Hi everyone,

I recently visited the ‘Amazonia: The Rights of Nature’ exhibit at the Museum of Anthropology in UBC. It is dedicated to the indigenous tribes of the Amazon rain forest to acknowledge and explores the creative ideas that inspire Indigenous resistance to threats facing their habitat. There are various objects displayed, such as – pots, pans, bags, headdresses etc., which are a collection of acquisitions and donations. The museum is also a centre to portray the relationship of Canadians and the indigenous tribes.

Of all the objects and panels displayed across the exhibit, what I found the most intriguing, was the panel about the Shipbo and their artefacts. The Shipbo tribe lives along the Ucayali river in the upper part of the Amazon, in Peru. The tribe is famous for their sacred artwork and spiritual remedies. The ‘kene’ is the design reproduced in wood, canvas, ceramic or human skin. It is an expression of the tribe’s worldview. Some of the pots had faces carved into them through the design. The ‘kene’ is a executed by the women of the tribe and is taught by practice from one generation to another. However, the motifs of these designs are only revealed to specific people through the chants that are performed in ‘ayahuasca’ ceremonies. These ceremonies are believed to spiritually enlighten people through the consumption of a special drink.

I felt a certain connection to this particular part of the exhibit as I come from a religion and background that is highly spiritual. Hinduism’s primary medium of communication and its most important aspect is the chants. Spirituality has played a major role in my childhood and hence, I understand its cultural significance and feel more inclined to connect with this particular tribe.

Inspite of the fact that I have not been to the Amazon yet, or have not seen a tribe before, the museum definitely enriches the second hand experience. It provided a platform to reflect on my connection to these tribes and the forest as whole. Today, the 36,000 Shipobos and other tribes across the region are facing a tremendous threat from major corporations, fisherman, and missionaries as these groups try to invade the tribe’s territory for construction and exploitation purposes. As a Geography student seeking to protect the environment, it pains me to see that there is no serious action being taken against these developing threats and brings into question my ethical responsibility towards these indigenous people.

The museum does a great job in channelling the different cultural works of the tribes, both architecturally and contextually, while keeping in mind the foremost reason of the exhibit – to bring awareness and understanding of consequences of the developing threats that are endangering these tribes.

Hey everybody!

It’s been quite some time since my last post and I’d like to treat you all with another now.

Over the last few weeks, we have been analysing and learning about Joy Kogawa and her controversial book – Obasan. The true reason for the title is unknown, but it is the Japanese word for ‘aunt’ and we can draw many conclusions due to the fact that her aunt plays one of the major roles in the book and in her life. To further enhance our understanding of the book and to dwindle into the mind of Joy Kogawa at the time of writing the book, our ASTU class was taken to the “Rare Books and Special Collections” library at the Irving K Barber Institute on campus. Unfortunately, I missed this visit and hence, had to go there myself and gather information. Due to this reason, I will be giving you readers a gist of the documents I felt were important and significant enough to alter interpretations.

Every author follows a journey to write and publish a book. A book not only contains a story, but also reflects some form of personal memory or event that was influential in the author’s life. In this case, Joy Kogawa reflects on the hardships that Japanese Canadians faced during WWII, while also giving us her (a child’s) perspective. She also includes incidents of personal trauma and by doing so, bridges the gap between personal and shared memory and brings about the term of collectiveness. Out of the several documents I viewed, the fan mails and letters from significant authorities were the most appealing to me as I, naively, viewed Obasan as only a book by another victim of trauma, not knowing the extent to which it has reached and helped several people.

Obasan was written well after the traumatic events that the Japanese Canadians had to face. I looked at one of the letters that Joy received a year after publishing the book. It sought to express her love for the book and suggest a poem that she wrote that Joy could possibly use. More importantly, the letter stressed on the fact that she was a Canadian who wasn’t writing out of guilt for what her forefathers did, but rather out of respect and sympathy for what she faced as a child. Another fan mail was from a young girl in the 10th grade, appreciating Joy’s strength, asking for advice and most importantly, relating to her struggle. These letters prove that Obasan is not merely a book about trauma, but has also reached out to several others who can relate to her story and this makes for a comfortable atmosphere for anyone who has experienced such trauma. As the first letter suggests, the book is also linking and uniting the Canadians and the Japanese Canadians as they heal their relationship post-WWII. What surprised me the most, was a letter that the Prime Minister of Canada at that time had written to Joy. It expressed his desire to read the book during his holidays.

I feel that the book has a wide audience as Joy intends to educate the readers about the story of the Japanese Canadians through writing about her painful experiences as a child and also interweaving her personal memory and history. Obasan is a book that has not only brought together two generations and countries, but has also stood to serve the purpose of providing victims with a comfortable space to relate and to educate its vast audience on the importance of creating a better future through reflecting and remembering the past.

Hey everybody!

Over the last two weeks, we’ve been analysing and studying a graphic narrative from Marjane Satrapi titled ‘Persepolis’. In this post, I’m trying to establish connections between the rise of Islamic nationalism in Iran and the recent spread of Hindu nationalism in India. This book is a memoir of Marjane as she talks about, and reflects on the events that she has encountered, growing up in Iran during and after the Islamic revolution.

Since, it is under Islamic rule, Iran is governed through Islamic principles. The Islamic revolution was a violent revolution that changed the lifestyle of Iran’s population across all platforms, one of them being the fact that it’s mandatory for women and girls of all ages wear a veil. Marjane was a rebellious teenager and didn’t wear the veil, just like many other women in her family. She was against the idea as she believed it was a portrayal of oppression and curbed her freedom to be a woman who wanted to dress as she desired. Along with the veil, several other types of clothing were prohibited, including ‘tight’ jeans and clothing that possessed any sort of references to western culture.

After the Islamic revolution, the heads of states’ primary focus was to denounce and eradicate western influences by forcing a state of Islamic law, asking everyone to adopt an Islamic lifestyle. This phenomenon of religious coercion not only exists in Iran, but is present and growing in several countries across the globe. To give this blog a more personal touch, I will take the example of my home country – India.

India is an immensely diverse country with each state embracing a different culture and language. With existing mass populations of different religions, India is and has always been a predominantly Hindu country with over 79% of the population identifying as Hindu. As with most multi-religious countries, not all people are at peace with each other. From the very beginning Islam entered India with the Mughal invasion, Hindus and Muslims haven’t always been at peace with each other, with heightened conflict in recent years.

As the country’s population is dominated by Hindus, it is no surprise that they have some influence over the government. An example of this can be seen with the recent religious issue that wrecked havoc among people and stirred the nation to think about it’s fundamental values and its behaviour towards diversity.

The cow is a sacred animal in Hinduism and is worshipped by millions. Therefore, the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party), a very powerful Hindu nationalist party, banned the trade and consumption of beef in the state of Maharashtra (where it was in power) in 2015. Despite this ban being implemented only in the state of Maharashtra, consumption of beef proved to be fatal in several other parts of the country. Several Hindu fundamentalists took matters into their own hands and violently acted against many beef sellers and supposed families who stored beef at their homes, despite the fact that beef was completely legal in those particular areas. There were cases everyday of radical Hindus attacking and sometimes killing people who were accused of consuming beef – most of the victims being christians and muslims.

There can be many parallels drawn between Marjane’s explanation of the consequences of the Islamic revolution and the recent acts of the Hindu fundamentalists in India. Hindu nationalism is being spread through violence and terror as radical Hindus are imposing their view of nationality by replacing the religious identity of the population with what they consider to be the ‘right way of life’ and limiting any opposing ideologies through the use of violence and indoctrination. Iran faced/faces a similar situation as radical muslims are imposing fundamental Islam.

Religion and repression is one of the key themes of Persepolis. Satrapi brings out how nationalism in Iran has catalysed that oppression. It is evident that a similar situation will soon occur in India with the continuing spread of Hindu nationalism. Ultimately, the graphic narrative portrays the reality of a repressive religious regime and how it influences the people’s religious identity. I, personally, believe that nationalism can be an uplifting and unifying factor in a country, especially one as diverse as India. However, upon reading Persepolis and understanding the dangers religious nationalism can pose to society, it is clear that what is happening in India is hazardous to its status as a democratic and secular country. Regardless, nationalism is an individual belief which cannot and should not be imposed through indoctrination and force, which opposes an individual’s basic right to the freedom of expression.

Hey everybody, I am successfully enrolled in the Global Citizen’s CAP stream at the University of British Columbia!

One of the courses I am enrolled in is ASTU and Professor Luger gave us a good foundation-building first class. In the second class, I was introduced to the idea of collective memory and how it can shape the view of society, and this stood out to me considering the fact that it involves a lot of personal engagement.

We live in a dynamic world that is based on individual perspectives. What one might believe to be futile, might be regarded as a necessity to another. An essay was presented to us in class, written by autobiographical sociologist, Kate Douglas called  “Youth, Trauma and memorialisation: The selfie as witnessing”. This essay highlights the discomfort and agitation among people who believe that the 21st century act of taking selfies at locations of traumatic events are inappropriate and disrespectful.

This essay provoked me to think about the selfies that I took at Mumbai where the 26/11 attacks took place. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, the 26/11 attacks were a series of terrorist acts that took place in the city of Mumbai on the 26th of November, 2008. More than 160 people were killed and it was the most devastating attack in India in recent times. This attack shook the entire nation and was mourned for weeks. There was tension and communal violence against the Islamic population in the country and several nationalists and conservatives shared their polemic against any or all acts that could be interpreted as demeaning towards the event.

Several days after the attack, despite the horrific scenes witnessed, there was a sense of unity that prolonged the country and citizens got together to mourn and uplift the people at loss. The sense of unity was further enhanced by stories of the heroic acts of the tactical police force and people who went above and beyond to help their fellow citizens in danger and distress. Therefore, this event stood as a symbol for national pride.

When I visited the city in 2014, I took several selfies at many of the sites that were subject to the attacks. While doing so, the thought of it possibly being disrespectful or derogatory did not occur to me, rather I took these selfies with the intent to honour the victims and to remember the people who helped. It wasn’t a selfie taken for personal interest, rather, it provided a platform to show respect for everyone affected that night.

In the essay, Douglas suggests that selfies are a way of sharing experiences and more so a form of communication that the current generation has adapted to. After reading the essay and learning about collective memory in class, I personally believe that it contributes to the shared experience of an event and is also a primary mode of carrying forward the essence of the past through the contribution of several methods of acknowledgement that every forthcoming generation uses; ours being selfies.

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