Insight
Nahyan and Sujan made a presentation of the learnings from the session, yesterday. Although their presentation was very exhaustive and it was evident that they had put in a lot of hard work, it was suggested to them that maybe they should have presented it more creatively and with the focus on their insights and learnings.
Sacha then told the group, ‘you don’t need to be afraid. After this prep course, you will be confident when interacting with others in a foreign country’.
‘Everyone has a right to live…’
A very interesting case study was presented to all the groups. Six people were profiled and the group was asked to choose in order of acceptance, who they would be more acceptable to have as tenants. The profiles were as follows – a) Ruth (35 years and a social worker), b) Mona (38 years) & Ali (44 years) and their 8 year old son, c) Hans (20 years) student of medicine, d) George (56 yrs) and a sailor who will be away at work for several years, e) Nora (22 yrs) & Fatima (39), Nora works in a nearby school and Fatima is selling cars, f) Tom (40 yrs) & Lisa (19 yrs). Tom works in a farm and Lisa is at home with their 4 months old daughter.
The participants then got into a discussion within their own groups. A lot of interesting data was presented. Two groups said their first preference was Tom & Lisa. They felt that they liked somebody who owned a dog. It gave a picture of security and dependability. One group pumped for Nora and Fatema, while the other group went with Ruth.
In the next round, a little more information was given about the characters. For instance Ruth turned out to be a black American social worker who had previously been to jail. Nora and Fatima were discovered to be Lesbians who were in a steady relationship. Mona & Ali were in a live-in relationship. Hans is a student who wears Nazi insignia on his clothes.
When this information was shared with the group, prejudices and beliefs slowly started emerging. One group relegated the lesbians lower down the order. Another group stuck to the same list even after the new information. Their criterion was priority to women, regular income generating clients, and the specific needs of the client. Two groups put the social worker on top. The medical student looked less likely to get accommodation. The sailor was relegated to the last spot.
Gently the participants were forced to examine their standpoints. There were various debates and discussions that took place. ‘You have moralised lesbians very badly.’ ‘That lady committed a crime for which she was sent to prison.’ ‘Why are we thinking of her past?’ At moments Sacha would intervene, ‘you are making a lot of assumptions based on limited information’. Somebody said, ‘we are impressed with Ruth’s achievements.’
Another response was ‘how does the church validate living together?’ Another person said ‘people who are not married and are living-in a relationship are very likely to separate.’ At which there was a retort, ‘but what about all the divorces that take place.’ The perfect response was this, ‘marriage is not something that is signed in a register book it is more than that.’
This truly powerful session was summarised this way by a participant, ‘I am from a conservative Bengali family and when I came here Iam beginning to see new view points and realize that everyone has a right to live’.
Be Aware
Sacha had this to say, ‘There will always be disagreements in society. The world is never perfect. This is the reality. When you go to another country you are a stranger and they will judge you. The opinions, judgements that you made about others; people in a new country will be judging you. Ask yourself if the judgements and opinions they made about you are fair! Therefore be sensitive of your opinions.’
Follow up activities
What kind of follow-up activities would you do to share your experiences?
1. Photography exhibition
2. Multimedia workshop
3. Documentary
4. Photoshop workshop for rural photographers
5. Video documentation
6. Develop content for a website
7. Seminars
8. Video clips
9. Presentation
10. Group work
11. Demonstration
12. Case studies
Spotlight
Prathapratim Roy Choudhary is from Kolkata, India. A textile engineer by profession he moved into social work to help improve the conditions of the textile weavers and dyers. He says that this workshop is very important for him. Citing an example of this morning when he was forced to view new viewpoints in the landlord and tenant exercise, he found it moving. His biggest dream (hold your breath) is to study Philosophical Mathematics. Apparently it forms the original rules on which the mathematical formulae is constructed. He loves to read books on Philosophy and to listen to Rabindra Sangeet. Being a peace lover he hates all wars.
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