Resilience

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit the sub county of Awach. Erin, Lindsay and I were escorted by the War Affected Children’s Agency (WACA) to witness traditional dances and songs by a youth and orphanage group. Although we stayed longer than expected the experience was amazing.

Most if not all of these young people have been directly traumatized by the war.

The video would not upload, but the pictures explain themselves ….

Traveling the Span of Uganda in One Week: The Faculty Mentor Edition

Honestly, I think we traveled the span of the country in one week.

(from the south) Entebbe --> Kampala (to the north) --> Gulu (and then more north) --> Kitgum (which happens to be 40 miles from the border of Sudan!!

What’s the reason for all this traveling? … Well, I’m glad you asked!

Before my departure for Uganda, my faculty mentor Dr. Rosalind Hackett and Erin’s faculty mentor Dr. Tricia Hepner made plans to visit us during UT's spring break. Erin and I were pretty excited about their arrival.
Then as the weeks passed and we realized “Hey, our professors will be here in 2 days!” we began to panic. Had we done enough research/field work to receive their stamp of approval? Had we made significant progress in their eyes?? Did our data and efforts reflect what we reported to them through email??? ….

Then there was a little thing that I like to call “ The Hackett Effect” … Only few students have experienced it- the exhaustion, the non-stop moving, the begging to take a nap! All the things you become familiar with when you have the pleasure of spending time with Dr. Hackett in Africa. She’s amazing. She has more energy than any two people and she can keep going past the average person's limit … so, let’s just say the effect is real … and I’m a survivor ;)
We couldn’t have accomplished more in one week than if we had brought an official delegation of people from UT.

BUT moving on. The activities of the week: The girls and I made the trip down from Gulu to Kampala by bus. Thanks to the incredible planning skills of Lindsay, we arranged transport and hotel accommodations for our awesome professors, and then we picked them up from the airport on Friday night.

The following morning we spent the entire day in the comfort and homey environment of the hotel’s dinning and living room area. Many friends of Dr. Hackett’s and The Jazz for Justice Project (JfJ) stopped by, including the co-founder of the Northern Ugandan Girls Education Network (NUGEN), Betty Udongo. We managed to only leave the hotel at the day’s end to have dinner. And boy was that a TREAT! I think we must have found the BEST Mexican restaurant in all of Kampala “Lotus Cantina!" So that was our first day. Things only picked up from that point. In six days we managed to meet with representatives and staff from Refugee Law Project, Gulu University, the Institute of Peace and Strategic Studies and Gulu University’s chapter of the Rotary Club. Not to mention the great meeting we had with Gulu’s LCV Chairman and presidential candidate, Norbert Mao.

Next, in what I like to call HIGHLIGHTS of the week: All the different types of cuisine we enjoyed! If it wasn’t Mexican that first night, It was Turkish on Saturday, Indian on Monday, Traditional (Ugandan) food on Wednesday, Ethiopian on Thursday …but some of the best food of the trip was traditional, served to us at Bishop Ochola’s home in Kitgum.

Still with all of that, the most wonderful development of the week came out of a board meeting with Gulu University deans, faculty and staff. After three very lengthy meetings, a partnership was struck between GU and UT. The first installment of this partnership is an international service and study aboard program that would take place as early as next summer in Gulu! From there, we hope to open a formal exchange program between students and allow faculty from UT to come and do guest lecture series. Everything is still in its infancy, but the commitment is there from both parties.

As a student who came here independent of a study abroad program, I welcome the idea of more UT students participating in international service learning. I’m overjoyed to share the gift that is Uganda with others. And what an unbelievable gift it is.


P.S. All that worrying that Erin and I did was for nothing. They were very impressed (phew!) and everything worked out :)

Busy Week. Big Results. Great Memories

1st Picture: War Memorial in Kitgum
2nd Picture: A school that was destroyed and abandoned during the war. Took this picture on our way back from Kitgum- the school wall is riddled with bullet holes
3rd Picture: 3 lovely little girls coming home from school right next to the Pincer office
4th Picture: The Professors standing on the hill of a Catholic Church overlooking Kampala- Breathtaking view
5th Picture: Lindsay, Erin and I at the Miracle Center Church

Too Little Time … So Much To Do

Some updates on my research for all you academics out there! “Eh em” (Clears Throat)

There has been a slight change in plans BUT everything is still on track thanks to the “pow-wow” between a creative team of faculty mentor (Dr. Hackett), committee member and faculty advisor (Dr. Hepner) recent college scholars graduate (Lindsay), honors anthropology student (Erin) and northern music artist (Jeff Korando) …

I’ve gained a better focus and I am still operating under the program I designed for College Scholars: “Post-Conflict Education.” But for the purpose of my time here I will be studying Peace Education in Schools- specifically the implementation of “Peace Clubs” in primary schools and the integration of a peace education curriculum in the secondary schools

Peace Education is a broad term, but it is used to describe a range of activities including promoting peace and nonviolence, teaching conflict-management skills and encouraging tolerance in schools and the community.

My initial comparative study on NGO, local and foreign educational programs was a little too broad for the time that I’m here. The good thing is, is that I have a ton of background information for my focus and a large pool of connections to help me visit schools where there is a peace education curriculum. AND even greater, the agency that I volunteer for, The Pincer Group International Limited, is the group that established “peace clubs” in primary schools! Can you say divine appointment?!

So YES, research is going well … so well in fact that I might stay a little longer … till maybe around mid July …

A change in plane ticket may be on the way!

Atye Ka Kwano Leb Acholi

I am Learning Luo …

For the past week Erin, Lindsay and I have been taking Luo language lessons- one hour, every morning. Luo is the predominant language spoken in northern Uganda. For this region of the country there are three main dialects: Acholi, Langi and Nebbi, which happens to also be the name given to the people here. It gets a little confusing but Luo is of the Nilotic language family and it’s even spoken in parts of Sudan and Kenya!

It’s just more exciting to learn in this setting than to sit in a classroom following a generic curriculum.

I’ve always had trouble learning Spanish back home. I would learn a long list of vocabulary words and conjugations, picking up tricks here and there to help me remember … but the drive wasn’t there. Even having a Mexican-American best friend to talk with didn’t motivate me! My frustration with moving at the same pace as every other Spanish class fueled my desire to learn a different language. We were never allowed to slow down for a section that was giving us trouble or speed past those things that we already knew. If you weren’t on the same page as the other classes, you weren’t following the rules. My instructors didn’t have the freedom to use their own teaching styles which made me feel constrained … When and if they did deviate it was like a breath of fresh air, but most of the time if was like Charlie Brown’s teacher [insert sound effects here].

BUT I haven’t given up on Spanish, especially when Luo sounds so much like it (with a little French and Chinese twist) it’s so interesting!

Being immersed in the Acholi culture has given me a real advantage and a huge opportunity to learn more than I ever would in the classroom.

When I can get up every morning, a little past sunrise, and have the coolness of the day usher me to my lessons … When I can say “Wan Nen” to my friends instead of “See you later”… And when I can be set apart from all other foreigners because I’m simply trying to learn … It just feels right.

And it’s more fun!

I’ve found that truly learning a language creates laughter … and I’ve smiled more and more since starting my lessons :)

Image: Sunset in Gulu

African-American Daughter of the Moon - WANGO'O

In one of the most unexpected experiences of my journey here I received my Acholi name.
For some time, I had been hoping to receive a name. Friends who’ve traveled here before me already had their names and used them quite frequently. I was beginning to become jealous.

For one, I found that my name “Jayanni” is not only difficult to pronounce back home, but it’s very difficult for Ugandans to pronounce, spell and remember. I dread greetings because even Erin and Lindsay’s names present a challenge for people. You can guess what happens when I say “Hello, I’m Jayanni!” …

But about that unexpected experience: One word. WANG'OO. Wang’oo is the traditional practice of story-telling by fire for the Acholi. Its significance and use, however, goes beyond that. It is used for counseling, marriage and funeral arrangements, teaching (especially for the youth) and learning of gender roles (just to name a few) … But because of the war it was largely discontinued- and for some, destroyed.

We were invited to sit in on a Wang’oo as guests of The Pincer Group- An education consultation agency. They put together that night’s Wang'oo in a village a few miles from Gulu Town. It was apart of their peace and cultural reinvigoration projects for the war-torn region.

We sat around a blazing fire with elders, women and youth from the village. After receiving a warm welcome, we were prompted to sit down in some of the more comfortable chairs there. Lindsay and Erin introduced themselves using their Acholi names of Aber (ah-bear) and Adyer (i-dee-ay) … Next was my turn and they quickly asked why I did not have an Acholi name. Embarrassed, I replied that I was waiting to receive one … The elders conversed among themselves and my name was presented to me.

ANYADWE.
Pronounced: an-yad-whey … It means daughter of the moon. It is given to the most beautiful.

I was extremely flattered and honored to receive such a name in such a way. One elder promptly rose from his set and embraced me tightly, calling me his daughter. He said I had left, but now I was returned- The emotions that fell over my body were deep and brought tears to my eyes. Was I home? My dark skin, textured hair and facial features the only things physically connecting me to my African heritage. Everything else that made this person before you was shaped by America and my experiences growing up as a black girl in the U.S.

But that did not matter. I was returned and although 300-400 years removed from Africa by slavery, oppression, Jim-crow, segregation, racial discrimination, institutionalized racism and all such efforts to integrate blacks into American society … I, was still his daughter. I was STILL a daughter of Africa.

Yes, most Ugandans are confused by me. A Black-American, but even more so a dark-skinned Black American …

It’s known that the U.S. media disproportionally shows fewer images of blacks in mainstream television. And when they do they are brown-skinned to light-skinned Blacks (remnants of slavery) … and if Rap/Pop music videos (usually the unintelligent kind) are the only thing that is allowed to permeate African society, then there is neither a fair nor diverse representation of us … AND what is being taught in the schools here that would warrant such confusion? …

I do believe that West Africa may be different though. Their perception of Black Americans may be much more varied. There has been little travel to east Africa by African-Americans, which may explain largely why I confuse so many people who try to figure out my ethnicity and nationality.

I’m am proud to own my confused identity though- Whether it is here or back home.

To be simply American or African is to not acknowledge history, my heritage and the truth. I am African-American. Being black in the U.S. will always be a different experience from anything ever presented in film, television or video. And though many (of all races) try to recreate it on TV and in movies- This identity can only be lived … and loved because it’s neither or- It is many things. I am only one representation of it.

Africa is a tremendously diverse continent with a long list of ethnic groups, languages, dialects, cultural practices, religions, beliefs and yes shades of skin. So where do I fit in? …

Guess I will let you know when I find out!

This doesn’t begin to explain everything though- these words, my words- because like I said this identity can only be lived … and loved because you know of its struggles, of its triumphs of its failures, its quiet strength, its mistakes, its resilience, its ugly and of its immense beauty.

This House is Not a Home ... Yet

So I thought it would make for an interesting read if I posted a little something about moving into our house … Here it goes.

AHHHHHHH! … would be the perfect way to describe the process of moving. I myself am a first timer. I have never rented a house before. So to do it in a foreign country is … yeah.

As soon as we arrived in Gulu, Erin and I met up with a Ugandan friend, Jeff, who had been looking for our house since last semester. We proceeded to drop off our things at our hotel and proceeded to go inspect the houses. We started out looking for a furnished house, but we would learn that that was just unrealistic … It took us two days to see them all, but we had six options. One beautiful yet expensive house, one very nice house that did not have running water (umm no thank you), 2 very shady and awful hole-in-the-grounds, a nice house by Gulu University (too far from town though) and then the one we finally decided on in Pece :)

It was a tough choice. The house by the university was just as nice as the one in Pece. The only thing holding us back from it was the distance. What we would pay each month to boda into town would cover how much extra rent we would pay for the house in Pece. The choice seemed obvious, but we still had to consider how our third roommate would feel about the decision when she arrived.

The “we would be closer to town” argument won of course and the “it’s getting too expensive to stay in this hotel another night” pushed us to pick the house in Pece. All in all we made a good choice. The house has two bedrooms (one very huge), an awesome living room, bathroom and a very nice kitchen. But it all had to be cleaned, the walls had to be painted and it HAD to be fumigated (which is something we are still waiting on)

My first night in the house: I felt liberated from staying in Kampala and hotels. I had privacy … I could settle down, make it a place of refuge if I wanted, and call it home … eventually.

It had been a hectic couple of days, because in a week Erin and I had looked for a house, decided on a house, worked out a plan of payment, had 3 meetings with our land lady, finalized the lease agreement, spent 3 days pricing and shopping for house items, ordered bed frames, a table and chair set and a living room set. PHEW! I’m exhausted just thinking about it. In between all of that we made countless runs to the bank and various areas of town. Sadly my research took a back seat during that week …

Our third roommate and friend, Lindsay, arrived from the U.S. a few days later. Her arrival would add relief and a little more stability in our lives. (Considering this was her 5th visit to Uganda and this time she bought a one way ticket)

Now, MOVING IN! … well that was more easy said than done. As of this moment we are still moving in. Today we moved in our living room set. Tuesday my shelf will be ready.

Most of our frustration living here has not come about from finding this place, but from everything that needs fixing! And by everything I mean EVERYTHING!

Plugs, electrical wiring, door handles, a sink pipe, window panes! BUT the two biggest things: Electricity and Water! … Blackouts are frequent here so we expected it. However we didn’t anticipate it to be everyday! With phones and computers needing to be charged, tempers began to flare. Having no water for days at a time did not help.

The Good news is that they fixed our water problem today, but for some reason it ran out again this morning. (I’ve learned not to get my hopes up). If we could have water AND electricity together, running at the same time for at least a week then my faith in our “house crew” would grow … Not to mention that every time they repair something they break two more things. It’s becoming a habit that needs to be broken.

So as of now I’m taking it one day at a time … just like everything else. We still have plenty of repairs left, but with furniture coming in and the bond growing between me and the girls, this House will become a Home.

Success Stories for Humanity

The day of my birthday brought with it many things. For one, it gave me a chance to take a break and relax from the chaos that surrounded moving into our house. In a week and a half Erin and I went house hunting, found a house, signed a lease for 6 months, ordered furniture, shopped intensely for about 3 days, started repairs and unpacked the loads of clothes we had in our suitcases … We were exhausted.

When my birthday arrived we decided to unofficially designate it “Rest Day.” In the past my birthday always involved a lot of "hoop-la" and excitement, but being in Uganda is enough excitement to last me a lifetime.

Spending the later part of the morning and afternoon by the only pool in town (Acholi Inn) we made plans to have dinner at the fabulous Indian restaurant in town later that day.
So the day brought with it rest and relaxation, but it also brought something unexpected: A meeting with Bishop Ochola and Archbishop Odama! … We took the 15-20 minute boda ride out to Gulu Cathedral and the Archbishop’s Residence.

Words cannot describe what all took place as we sat and listened to them talk. They were humble and talked openly about the war and their hope for sustainable peace. Each gave so much of their time that Archbishop delayed one of his meetings that night to continue talking with us! …

I felt as if I were somewhere else. Tears began to swell in my eyes as they talked about the troubles facing the north. A military solution to stop the LRA was not an option to them. Both were looking to rekindle the peace talks as Archbishop Odama said “War [fighting] does not give birth to peace … Don’t get tired of talking … and listening.” A military solution to bring an end to the LRA would mean that the people would lose. “Their children are not coming back,” Bishop Ochola remarked. He was concerned that they would not be able to tell their stories … to tell the truth about what happened to them in the bush … Who else would tell their stories if they are all killed?

It all began to weigh heavily on my mind. My mind flashed back to a few days before when I’d read an article criticizing the religious leaders for their recent visit to Kinshasa (DRC). They met to talk about ways to bring about a peaceful end to the conflict. But, some organizations and officials are now supporting military action simply because the “peace talks” have failed time and time again. Archbishop knowing this said, “Military action is easy … and then you regret it [because you forget] this is a human being”

So forward and honest in their thinking that I was little astonished. They saw humanity as one collective body and that the struggles of one should be of concern to all. They told stories of triumph and forgiveness in which they properly named, “success stories for humanity.” They said if more people were exposed to these stories they would not push for military intervention … some of the most influential leaders like Mandela, Ghandi, Martin Luther King, and Jesus “For those of you who are Christians,” are well known examples of success in the mist of oppression, Archbishop stated …

I can’t recall how long we stayed, but it was dark when we departed. With my heart full, I replayed their message in my head … letting it marinate … letting it stick

I can still hear Archbishop say, “If humanity wants to spare themselves,” and Bishop Ochola finishing his sentence saying “Forgive”

What a lasting image of strength and hope