Weaving Solidarity

Solidarity.  The fundamental core of what Geography 495 is all about.

So, what exactly does solidarity mean? 

Juanita posed this question to all of us on the first day of class.  To be honest, I didn’t quite know what to make of the term.  I had a grasp of its theoretical definition and academic explanation, but other than that, I was lost.  It wasn’t until the next few weeks when our class engaged in “A Beautiful Unraveling”, a workshop directed by Mia Amir, when I began to develop my own sense of what solidarity was comprised of.  The workshop was designed to open up a safe space to recognize how each individual person internalizes power and positionality in one form or another, and this was demonstrated through activities that encouraged personal understanding and realization of what kind of privilege and oppression we are exposed to as individuals.

Personally, it was a surprise to become conscious of the fact that I am a privileged person and I reap the benefits that come with it.  I live in a ‘developed’ country, I come from a middle-class family, I have a post-secondary education, I am heterosexual, and I am not physically or mentally disabled.  On the other hand, I am an oppressed individual.  I am a non-Caucasian woman.  Interestingly enough, I had always been aware of the ways I am oppressed, but seldom had I given any thought to what makes me privileged, or whether I was privileged at all.  This process brings attention to the importance of recognizing how we are privileged to be able to actually work in solidarity with an oppressed group. If we do not willfully realize the ways in which we are privileged, we may very well continue to oppress the oppressed.  Therefore, solidarity is not simply a conceptual theory and mindset, but it is also felt, experienced, and embodied.

Although solidarity is a term compacted with meanings that differ for everybody, I feel that I have actively developed my own sense of solidarity with the help of Celia for the past few weeks.  Jess Van and I decided to help Celia learn English by fitting in English sessions whenever her schedule was open.  In the first few classes, we were lucky enough to have John join us as the translator, since I didn’t know any Spanish and Jess only knew the basics to get by (I wouldn’t know, I think her Spanish sounds great!)  The first session was a bit awkward for me because of the language barrier, but it definitely allowed me to step out of my comfort zone, since nothing productive would come of being self-conscious about my lack of Spanish skills.  Also, while I was preparing the lesson plans, I always tried to make an effort to avoid making our sessions feel like an authoritative relationship between a teacher and a student.  I found that this was not a problem because our English lessons turned into English AND Spanish lessons.  Jess and I played the role of English teachers and Celia was the Spanish teacher.

I ended up really enjoying our time together because all of us were co-learning and co-teaching. Although I always needed someone to translate for me when I spoke to Celia, I think we were still able to create a bond between us – a bond consisting of a lot of body language (being lost in translation means a few raised eyebrows, puzzled looks and of course the many laughs), but also a mutual understanding that learning a new language is fun and difficult at the same time.  I think we both realized that we were going through the same process with the same goal in mind – learning a language! Isn’t this what solidarity is all about?  Creating relationships and connections through the purpose of a common goal?  Even though we were not actively fighting against anything, I think being able to build this kind of relationship is one key element necessary for solidarity to be carried out in a positive and constructive way.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed participating in this community-service learning seminar and I am delighted to finish my undergraduate career with this course.  The structure of this class is unlike any of the other ones I have taken at UBC.  A majority of classes involve routine tasks – reading a textbook, writing papers, and examinations – which tend to require a lot of memorization, but no retention.  As students, Geog 495 gave us more freedom and flexibility on what we wanted to learn and how we learned it.  We created an open space for dialogue allowing each one of us to speak and be heard.  We diverted from the ‘traditional’ passive way of learning (i.e. in the form of lectures, reading abstract textbooks, copying notes) and instead learned through active participation.  In a sense, I have embodied the learning done in this class and it has positively affected my personal growth.  As corny as this sounds, it feels like the knowledge that I have gained from Geog 495 will always be part of who I am and something that I will never forget.  I feel lucky to have been a part of this process and it is unfortunate that only a tiny fraction of the university population is able to partake in such an action-driven, community-focused course.  This needs to change!

Thanks to all my classmates, Jennifer, Juanita, and especially Celia and Marla, for making this such a unique and rewarding experience!

Jessica T.