England riots and Historian David Starkey "The whites have become black "

Well, I did not want to comment about it at first. Then I could not resit!!!
Mr David Starkey needs to learn more about "cultures" and forget his well accepted  "patois". Seriously for an historian, his stereotypical approach did not surprised me. However,I was astonished by his confidence. This interview screams "academic racism". The colors, races, cultures and communities are just facades for a tragic discrimination against the " Have not". I fully support protests , not riots. At the end of the day, everybody chose a "camp". The truth is that  we all need to belong to a collectivity. The sad part is that racism is always used a "propaganda". Once again it is a "they vs us". And it should not be!!!

Let us not forget it is still the Same Moonlight for Our Dreams.

Watch and let me know what do you think?

World Refugee Day 2011, June 20th

I just want to say thank you to my parents, for everything they have done for us. I am more than a refugee, I am here. Thank you for everything....

"Smile even through your tears. Be strong even through your fears. -Zen Habits"

Peace to you all...
Same Moonlight for Our dreams...


Rahma Profile from iActivism on Vimeo.

World Refugee Day 2011

"A coalition of individuals, activists, filmmakers and international organizations that believe we can be more effective when we work together than when we work alone.  Because of this belief, we are working together to coordinate events all around the world during the week of World Refugee Day. Whether you are a genocide prevention activist or a recent refugee, an elementary school teacher or a Rabbi, we hope you will take this day to reach out to your community and connect.

Help make the world a more compassionate place by attending or hosting an event on June 20th. If you can’t make it out that day, please take at least one other action that day and share this website with your friends and family."

Soulful Vagabonds

Worldwide governments and citizens are struggling with “immigration”. In this global recession, immigration is treated like an epidemic requiring several forms of quarantine.  As immigration rate increase, deportations are skyrocketing. In this global unfair monopoly game, people are following the money. They are scavenging for resources. We are all doing it!!! The big difference is our locations on the monopoly board. It is the survival of the fittest. Immigration is a part of globalization.  This global community is without borders for people that have the right passports, visas, and wallets. It is also without frontiers for people that have hope and dreams!!The fortunate vagabonds are tourists or volunteers.

In my opinion, immigrants are soulful vagabonds that are tolerated in good times, and despised in hard times.Until the day, we are able to move to the Moon or Mars: Immigration will remain a problem on Earth!

To all  the aliens, citizens of the world and soulful vagabonds...

Same Moonlight for our dreams.

Oblivion of Darfur for Gold

According to MININGREVIEW.COM, “Sudan has signed 10 exploration deals for gold, iron ore and other minerals… Mining minister Abdel Bagi al-Jaylani told Reuters that the exploration deals were with Sudanese companies and four international companies from Saudi Arabia, India, Great Britain and China, to search for copper, lead, iron, zinc and gold.” It sounds so simple!!!

Southern Sudanese independence Referendum will take place on January 2011. Knowing that the South has an estimated of 6 billion barrels of oil reserves, gold digging in the North is the best next thing!! Then in 2011, Sudan is expected to sign 50 mining agreements in three Darfur states-“Kassala and Gedaref in the east, and the north-south border region of South Kordofan”. It is simple, isn’t!

I would love to know if the zealous companies will take environmental issues in consideration. While Sudan is suffering from inadequate supplies of potable water, soil erosion, desertification, and droughts, I hope that they will not insult local populations by using scarce water or poisonous chemical cyanide and accidentally over pollute the Nile. The hydropolitics in the Nile basin is complicated and affect regional and global welfare.Another well orchestrated oblivion profiting gold diggers. It is not about secular southern Sudanese versus theocratic state in northern Sudan but about power. Independence... separation... Save Darfur…For more go on the  Enough project. And pray for rain and peace in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states...

Same Moonlight for our Dreams

The Infidel by Josh Appignanesi and David Baddiel

It is a funny British comedy on faith,culture, and identity. I love it!!! Here the plot!!"An identity crisis comedy centred on Mahmud Nasir, successful business owner, and salt of the earth East End Muslim who discovers that he's adopted - and Jewish."  I love the fact that you see the other side of all the stereotypes  with tons of humor and cursing. Nobody chose a birth place or parents. We all are born somewhere, raised somewhere, and try to grow somewhere. If you lucky you have many friends from different cultures,spirituality,traditions, faith and religions. Really funny movie!

Unreal collision of feminism and extremism to apoptosis

In France, the Burqa will be officially ban in Avril, 2011.  Yesterday, a retiree teacher was condemned to one month of jail suspended sentence for pulling out the Burqa of a lady from the emirates(26 years old!!!). And this passionate sexagenarian feminist will have to pay 800 euros fine. As much as the government preaches a secular elitism on human rights, it is a theatrical masquerade. It is a pure farce worthy of Moliere himself.  Bright and loud fireworks are much easier to handle than real problems of racial discrimination, economical marginalization and unemployment. I do respect the desire of  secularism but where is the equality, liberty, fraternity  stands in this denial of  rights.  I applaud this skillfully exploited situation. 

Attacking women is the oldest trick in the book because women are the motor of civil rights. They are quiet, soft and gentle but transmit the fire within. By destroying their freedom to practice their religions, it will accentuate the generation gap and the lack of “real” identity in youth. The youth is already battling the invisibility and a disregarded struggle in integration. And if you add the gender role on top, it is an excellent prey to predators and apoptosis. The suicide within the communities is a response to the forced mutation...Now, that the necrosis starts to expand only extremism can accelerate the required apoptosis. It is all about fear. It is not about the veil, the burqa, the miniskirt, the bikini or feminism. The Islamic dress code is a lame excuse. It is about our children. 

The oppression on women creates a less stable environment for them to transmit a peaceful fire to their children. For the longest time, forcing integration was enough to guarantee cultural fragmentation or silent ethnocide. The ban on Burqa expresses the polarization of France. And the sexagenarian feminist of the day was compelled to identify and separate her from us. It is an unreal collision of feminism and extremism to apoptosis. To conclude, I  will quote Arthur Rimbaud: “Life is the farce which everyone has to perform.”and Septima Poinsette Clark , “The greatest evil in our country today is not racism, but ignorance.”  

They are us. We are them. Different but the same.

Same moonlight for our dreams

The Colony by Al Jazeera

It is a super interesting documentary. I was surprise how much similarities I have with the Chinese immigrants and the African natives. Seriously, I was surprised that no matter where we are from,with diverse cultures, languages and spirituality, we are the same. In this global community, our differences are fading away even if we pretend otherwise. In a community of colonies, we tend to forget that cooperation is vital to our survival on the long run. I wish to find a documentary on African immigrants in China.
Enjoy!

The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson.

The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration(1910s to 1970s) by Isabel Wilkerson. I saw her interview on the PBS. Like she says, it is a classic American story. She interviewed hundreds and chosen three people from different decades and regions. I love how she presents this great migration as “immigrants in their own country”. Wilkerson emphasized on the distinction of “Emigrants with an E because they were actually leaving one place for another place that they hoped would be better”. The author is powerful and the message can reach out to all classes, races, and cultures. She offers a comprehensive story about leaving the South. In my opinion, it is a deep exploration of the immigrant mind. It is not just a classic American story because we can all related to the need of better education for our children and freedom. I love the subtility about the migration itself. People did not want to become “somebody”. They had modest goals. They had the will, the determination that made them go beyond.  The migrations were about rights not the desire of power. She also pointed out that these migrants were usually married couples, or families. And they always send money back home for the relatives. It is the immigrant mind. It is that bitter sweet silence struggle between the will, the conscience and the heart. Professor Isabel Wilkerson did a great job. It is a brilliant epic story that exposes this part of history. I am buying this book! I am sure it will be a stunning painting with all the flavor of soul, blues and jazz.
Same Moonlight for our Dreams
THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS by Isabel Wilkerson (SNEAK PEEK)

Between ‘the rock’ and a hard place by Caroline Muscat

Immigration issues and problems in Malta! Powerful and interesting  article.
Here the full version from the Malta independent Online

When Suleiman committed suicide in the dormitory he shared with other migrants at the Marsa Open Centre,it was a wake-up call to those who witnessed it. Now, two young men dare to hope in a life that has no meaning. Alidu Osman and Abshir Abdala are among the exiles of the modern age. They live between a lost past and a changing present. In their journey between different worlds, they are at home in none. Their greatest fear is despair; the same kind of despair that consumed Suleiman. Coming from entirely different backgrounds and completely diverse social contexts, they have nothing in common except one goal – a future.


Their predicament is difficult to understand. It is almost impossible to imagine a life where the only certain thing is the here and now. In such a life, hope and ambition are futile. Relationships are a luxury. Even self-respect is difficult to preserve.
“I do not know who I am,” says 22-year-old Alidu, looking down at the floor. He left Ghana five years ago, too young to know what the journey held in store for him. Instead of escaping to a future, he is now stuck in a present that never ends.


His friend Abshir even regrets leaving war-torn Somalia: “I jumped from the frying pan into the fire. I have no future here”. “The discrimination around me makes me a prisoner of myself. I have built my own boundaries to avoid embarrassment,” says the 31-year old husband and father of two children he has not seen in over a year. In Malta, the two men have become friends. Together they now form part of a movement for change. They have hope in the Migrants’ Network for Equality they launched earlier this month with the support of 12 local non-governmental organisations and 26 university academics.


They want to be an active part of Maltese society, contributing positively to the debate on migration. Their first action was to write a letter to Justice Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici. It was signed by representatives of communities in Malta coming from Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, Ghana, Niger, Mali, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Gambia and Sierra Leone.


In their letter, the message is simple: “While we are fully aware that life for us can never be easy, as most of us left our families and belongings back home and are now in the difficult process of starting a new life in a foreign country, we are conscious of the fact that certain factors related to policy are making our life harder and resulting in much suffering among many of us.”


They ask Dr Mifsud Bonnici to review policies on documentation, movement within the European Union, asylum procedures, discrimination, accommodation and employment.
“Maybe the Justice Minister doesn’t know the real conditions we live in. If they are brought to his attention, he can do something about it,” says Alidu, betraying an innocence even injustice could not dent. The letter was sent almost three weeks ago. “We have not received a reply yet. Perhaps they are busy,” he adds. They have not even received an acknowledgment.
In the meantime, their message extends beyond the silent walls of the Justice Ministry. Their concerns reflect a wider problem related to rising xenophobia and racism in this place that is lovingly, or not so lovingly, referred to as ‘The Rock’.


A lesson in humanity
...
All he has is nostalgia for a past, fixed time, when his identity was rooted in a community. It is a past to which he can never return. Both his parents are dead, and Alidu says he is wanted.

A convenient truth
...
In its report last year, ECRI confirmed that “people under humanitarian protection and refugees faced racial discrimination in accessing various services and exploitation in the labour market”. The Commission also noted that the detention policies put in place by the authorities to respond to the challenges of irregular immigration were “seriously reinforcing perceptions of immigrants as criminals and increasing the levels of racism and xenophobia among the general population.”


Abshir’s situation is one example. In Somalia, he was a full time biology teacher. He lived his life setting a good example to his students. When he was forced to leave, he sent his wife and children to Kenya for safety, while he attempted to use his skills and education in Europe so his family could at some point gain freedom.
When he arrived in Malta, he was confined to the detention centre where he became ill and had to be taken to hospital. He was handcuffed for the journey and constantly accompanied by an officer.
“When they put the handcuffs on me, I was shocked. Handcuffs are put on criminals. Suddenly, I am the one wearing them. When we entered the hospital waiting room and I saw everyone looking at me, I understood what they were seeing. I turned to my officer and told him to take me away. I could not bear it,” he says.

...
If the problems related to such double standards escape the attention of those same authorities entrusted with handling migrants’ concerns, how is it possible to expect a society that is free from prejudice? It is an infectious attitude that culminates in the often-repeated phrase targeting migrants: “If you don’t like it, go back to your country”.
...

Moving on
Abshir is grateful that his time in detention was a relatively short one. Due to his particularly vulnerable situation, he was let out after four months. Those who arrived with him on the same boat, in February of last year, are still there.
“The detention centres do not stop people from making the journey from Libya. All detention does is promote suffering,” he says, shaking his head. He cannot, and will not, accept that things do not change.
“I believe change can come. It may take long, but it can come. All I wanted was peace and freedom. I have peace, but not complete freedom because of the social segregation surrounding me. I have to be part of the community to contribute to it,” Abshir insists.
He finds the authorities’ silence particularly disturbing. The most recent case involving the rescue of 55 migrants from his country is impossible to ignore at this point.


...
That change starts to happen when every individual who witnesses discrimination refuses to turn away. Change is possible when citizens demand it from their elected representatives. How a state deals with immigrants should be a measure of its social and political health.
Migration has always been a core process of global politics and historical change. The theme of migration has been part of the collective human narrative for as long as there has been recorded history. Its roots lie in poverty, economic deprivation, persecution and failed states.
It is simply not possible to ignore the world’s dispossessed.

The soul of exile - Mona Ki Ngi Xiça by Bonga

In my opinion, this song of Bonga is the soul of exile.This one is for all the traveling birds in this global community. When nostalgia resides in our nests. Life's mysterious melody reminds us that beyond our dreams;these children of ours will stay here when we gone.Forever immortal in their hearts, we can  open their eyes to this beautiful world with love. We are different but the same. We are all urban refugees and distant relatives. To you all...
Same Moonlight for our dreams

MONA KI NGI XIÇA

(The Child I’m Leaving Behind)

(Barceló de Carvalho “Bonga”)

Bonga - 1972

Also recorded by: Ruy Mingas

Attention! I’m in mortal danger

And I’ve already warned you

She will stay here and I will go away

This child of mine

Evil people are after her

This child of mine

On a tide of misfortune

God gave me this offspring

That I brought into the world

And she will stay here

When I am gone

France: African Mothers protesting against Immigration

Liberty, Equality, Fraternity rhymes with Illegality, Inequality, Hostility in nationality.French I am, French I am not.Whatever...However, if I was homeless, paperless, penniless and about to be evicted and maybe deported: I will keep my baby close to me. I will stay close to the people that made me feel at home. Far away from the Eiffel tower, the Parisian lights and the splendid promenades, there are crowed dark, cold, humid rooms full of illegal immigrants. In those dark rooms, families are surviving wars that only some of us know about. In the absurdity of the barbarity, hope of bright future warm the hearts. Dreams of success orchestrate smiles and laughter. I was hurt by some of the reader’s comments on this video. Seriously, no mothers, parents will use his child as a shield: not even desperate illegal homeless mothers... ... Ignorance is a lethal….......... We are not animals. Even animals do not use their young for protection……

Like Bob Marley in War, I am pleading for “World citizenship”. I am praying for "international morality". And I am dreaming of "lasting peace". As Marley sang “ We Africans will fight We find it necessary and we know we shall win  As we are confident in the victory Of good over evil"

Well, I remember the last part of the French anthem about “sublime pride of avenging”. Instead, I am exercising my sublime pride of confidence in the victory “Of good over evil”. I want to thank these warriors for having the audacity of dreaming.
Same Moonlight for our dreams.



Evacuation de familles sans logement à la Courneuve
Uploaded by Mediapart. - News videos from around the world.

Documentary: Lakota Today by Aaron Huey

Aaron Huey is a photographer for National geographic Adventure. With challenging and stunning images, he relates the fight for survival on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.Aaron captures the failures of the reservation system. The American dream of individual land ownership, illustrates the idea of  "the one who takes the best part of the meat." It is the same moonlight for our dreams...

Painting of Jean Ryan Hakizimana for asylum-seekers

Jean Ryan Hakizimana is the author of  "Postcolonial Identities: Constructing the 'New Irish'".He was born in Rwanda from Burundian Parents, a Hutu Father and a Tutsi Mother. He survived the early 70's Burundi civil war. His Family was assisted in their escape by an Irish priest, Fr. Ryan. His  parents gave him the middle name 'Ryan' in honour of this priest's generosity. In the early 90's his family returned to live in Burundi, butthey were force to flee again. His mother, father and sisters were killed . He was emprisonned and tortured. He managed to escape. He lived in precarity in the long marathon of refugees and asylum-seekers. Upon arrival in Irland, Limerick "he had no family, no English, and no certainty about his future.Today Jean Ryan uses his paintings to tell the story of his troubled past and the difficulties experienced by asylum-seekers all over the world."

Cesaria Evora - Petit Pays

Cesaria Evora - Petit Pays

Cesaria Evora, is a Cape Verdean singer.

Her blues always preaches hope, resilience, and faith.
And like Willie Dixon said "Blues Is the Roots, Everything Else Is The Fruits"

Je m'ecris from Kerry James

 Kerry James is a French Rapper. He is a voice of French ghettos. He said what we all wanted to scream.  My father did forbid us to curse or complain when we were frustrated.  However he encouraged us to write in order to control our emotions. I started writing poems at eight. And my mother saved  all of them!  This song is for my parents and my brothers. Thank you, Papa and Maman!

 Here the lyrics 

 Si je ne pouvais écrire je serais muet
Condamnés a la violence dans la dictature du secret
Submergé par tout ses sentiments sans mots
Je m'effacerais comme une mer sans eau
Ma vie ne serait pas la même
Aussi vrai que j'aurais pût prendre la tienne
Mon talent s'est corrompu dans l'illicite
Ou les instants de bohneur sont des éclipses
Lorsqu'ils ne sont pas des élipses
Alors j'ai écris dans l'urgence
Comme si ma vie en dépendait sous les sirènes des ambulances
J'ai écrit par instinct, par survie
Je me suis surpris a écrire afin de supporter la vie
Yeah, trop de moi dans mes écrits
Peut être que je n'écris plus, je m'écris
J'abandonne mon être a mes lettres
Car l'écriture sans âme n'est que l'être
Je n'écrit pas que pour m'oublier
Parfois j'écris pour qu'ils ne puissent jamais oublier
Pour qu'ils ne puissent jamais nier le martyre des braves
Soudain j'écris des volcans que je grave à l'encre de lave
Je ne fait que de la musique pour vibrer, faire vibrer les cœurs criblés
Je n'écris que pour dire vrai
Si je n'avais eu les mots, que serais-je?
Sur le banc des mélancoliques, ma poésie siège

Entre le marteau et l'enclume
J'ai dus éguiser ma plume
Quand je suis perdu dans la brume
Je fais chanter mon amertume
Alors j'écris, je crie, j'écris
J'ai pas le choix j'écris, je crie, j'écris

Comme une dédicace au slam, ca commence a capela
Toutes ces voix qui décrassent l'âme, toutes ces voix qui m'ont amené la
Si tout à coup mes mots s'envolent, c'est parce que le beat attérit
Moi j'ai pris ma plus belle plume pour pouvoir répondre a Kery
Et quand le piano redémarre, c'est pour souligner nos érances
Si j'écris c'est pour mettre face a face mes regrets et mes espérances
Seul sur scène, face a la salle ne crois jamais que je me sens supérieur
Si tu ne vois jamais mes larmes, c'est parce qu'elles coulent a l'intérieur
Y a très peu de certitude dans mes écrits
Mais si je gratte autant de texte, c'est que mon envie n'a pas maigrit
Envie de croire qu'a notre époque, les gens peuvent encore s'écouter
Là ou j'habite y a trop de gamins que la vie a déjà dégouté
J'écris, parce que les épreuves m'ont inspiré
J'écris comme tout ces mômes que le bitume a fait transpiré
Si y a tant de jeune dans nos banlieues qui décident de remplir toutes ces pages
C'est peut être que la vie ici mérite bien quelques témoignages
j'écris, parce qu'il suffit d'une feuille et d'un stylo
Comme les derniers des cancres peut s'exprimer pas besoin de diplôme de philo
J'écris surtout pour transmettre et parce que je crois encore au partage
A l'échange des émotions, un sourire sur un visage
On changera pas le monde on est juste des chroniqueurs
D'un quotidien en noir et blanc qu'on essaye de mettre en couleurs
Mais si on ne change pas le monde, le monde ne nous changera pas non plus
On a du cœurs dans nos stylos et la sincérité comme vertue

Entre le marteau et l'enclume
J'ai dut éguiser ma plume
Quand je suis perdu dans la brume
Je fais chanté mon amertume
Alors j'écris, je cris, j'écris
J'ai pas le choix j'écris, je cris, j'écris
Entre le marteau et l'enclume
J'ai dut éguiser ma plume
Quand je suis perdu dans la brume
Je fais chanté mon amertume
Alors j'écris, je cris, j'écris
J'ai pas le choix j'écris, je décris, ce que je décris

Entre Nos by Paola Mendoza

Entre Nos is written and directed by Paola Mendoza and Gloria La Morte, and starring Paola Mendoza. “Entre Nos” is the inspirational story of an immigrant mother and her children as they struggle to build a life.

In my opinion the title says everything. He says something that you feel deeply when you have two worlds, cultures and languages. “Entre nous” was what my mother told us. And Between us is what I say to my child. Same moonlight for our dreams is about keeping in mind that no matter what our “Entre nous”, “Between us”, and “Entre nos” are different but the same.  It is about family, hope, faith and dreams.

I cannot wait to have the DVD!

Happy Friday!

Entre Nos - Trailer from IndiePix on Vimeo.
Mariana leaves her impoverished hometown in Bogotá, Colombia with her two young children, Gabriel and Andrea, and heads to the USA to be reunited with her husband.
Soon after her arrival her husband abandons the family. With all her options closing in on her Mariana turns to the city's trash in order to put food on the table. With Gabriel and Andrea working beside her collecting cans, the family finds the most stability they have known since their arrival. And it is during these heartbreaking moments that the family triumphs.
In Entre Nos, Mariana, Gabriel and Andrea take us on an inspirational passage from innocence to maturity. Ultimately, we bear witness to a family's story of love that is not everlasting, and their personal courage that is.

My Afrocentrism, Panafricanism, Afropolitanism, Blackness and Identity

Identity is often shaped by culture, language, socio-economic, ethnicity, religion, and race. We pretend that it does not matter but it does. Obama’s election is a beginning of a new era. As much as everybody avoided focusing on the issue of race. It was all about it.  Obama got a big job. We got a big change. As child,I did struggle with my identity. It was like having different hats for every mundane occasion. Hutu, Tutsi, Comorian, Burundian, Rwandan, Belgian, French, African, Refugees, Resident, and Not Citizen were temporary labels. I did not know for sure who I wanted to be. However our parents were implementing the notion of “citizen of the world”. Most of the time, I was just black and refugee but our parents kept reminding us that our black is not their black. The bottom line I had two worlds: our and their. The worst was that in our, I was not black enough because I had too many accents when I did talk my native language. And I had a blended culture nothing authentic. Most of the time, I was labeled as an islander which was true too! Besides some Africans were  “afro” frenzy that I was happy being an “Islander”.

Identity crisis is present in all generations of migrant regardless race and ethnicity. There is gap that parents and children have to jump over to connect. And if you add adolescence, it is a recipe for complex silent dialogues full of fears and sadness. For our parents, Afrocentrism was a therapy to boost our pride. And Panafricanism was the fire that kept them going beyond the struggles of expatriates by relying on solidarity and hope. Afropolitanism is our mixing of European and African heritages.

 In Malcom X, Spike Lee illustrated Afrocentrism, Panafricanism , Blackness and the struggle for identity to world. When Nelson Mandela did talk at the end, I had chills. I knew that it was a movie where fictions and facts were intertwined. However seeing children saying “I am Malcom X” was deep. I felt the strength to be my own activist to say “I am me”.  Spike Lee did put words on the struggle of blackness. The movie engaged dialogues between generations. Thank You Mr. Spike Lee!

In 2005, riots occurred in the French Ghettos. I was sad but I felt that the hypocrisy was unveiled. Do not give me wrong France is my home. It is a part of my identity. I was in elementary school for the bicentenary of the French Revolution. In my mind, I was French but at sixteen, I was reminded of my foreigner status with a French residency. I happily took my citizenship at eighteen. As ex-refugee I knew the value of a European passport. The current French identity crisis is the refusal to address the issue of race. A secular system that preaches “liberty, equality, fraternity” cannot openly accept racism and xenophobia. That is why it relies on elitism, classism and separatism of immigrants and their descendants. I am hoping for a French civil rights movement and  for reforms.

I am a mix of the cultures and languages. They all shaped my identity in many ways I cannot define but they did. Kirundi is a valley where I belong, French is a plain where I grew up, English is woodland where I am growing. I am an Afropolitan and a Negress. I am a daughter, a sister, a friend, a woman and a mother. Beyond my skin and words, I am here.

James Brown-Maceo Parker “ Soul of a Black Man”

 James Brown-Maceo Parker “ Soul of a Black Man” 
This is one is for my father and  my mother for teaching us resilience and soul.This one is also for all the immigrants, expatriates, travelers, refugees, exiles, asylums, illegals, clandestino, sans papiers, locals, all the people all over, in the cities,in the streets, in the ghettos, up, mid, and downtown.

“To know how, it is like and how it feels.”

 Enjoy!

 

James Brown Quotes:

I only got seventh-grade education, but I have a doctorate in funk, and I like to put that to good use.

The one thing that can solve most of our problems is dancing.

It doesn't matter how you travel it, it's the same road. It doesn't get any easier when you get bigger, it gets harder. And it will kill you if you let it.

Sometimes you struggle so hard to feed your family one way, you forget to feed them the other way, with spiritual nourishment. Everybody needs that.

My son don't have to say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud. He don't have to be called those crazy names.

"The Cry of the Sea” by Aïcha Thiamin-Le Cri de la Mer (Barca walla Barsakh)

This is a beautiful documentary about clandestine immigration in Africa. Aïcha Thiamin in "The Cry of the Sea” exposes the feelings of survivors of the 2006 trip that killed 85 persons attempting to reach Spain by sea. They succumbed to harsh days at sea without food and water. Despite the loss of their children and men, these women offer hope and optimism without disregarding reality. They are working together to survive; furthermore to thrive for a better future for themselves and their community.

Quotes of Aïcha Thiamin from

http://blog.cineafrique.org/2010/02/15/le-cri-de-la-mer-un-temoignage-poignant-sur-l-emigration-clandestine/

"Aïcha Thiamin: The loss of their children in these appalling conditions already makes the lives of these women too hard. But today life goes on because there is a time to fight, also a time to laugh, dance and drown her pain and sadness. As long as there is life, there is always hope"

Il s'agit d'un beau documentaire sur l'immigration clandestine en Afrique. Aïcha Thiamine dans "Le Cri de la mer» expose les sentiments des survivants d'un  voyage maritime de 2006 qui a tué 85 personnes tentant de rejoindre l'Espagne. Ils ont succombés à des jours difficiles en mer, sans nourriture et  sans eau. Malgrés la perte de leurs enfants et de leurs hommes , ces femmes donnent de l'espoir et l'optimisme sans oublier la réalité. Elles travaillent ensemble pour survivre;  et en outre se développer pour un meilleur avenir en tant que  communauté.

Citation d' Aïcha thiamine sur
http://blog.cineafrique.org/2010/02/15/le-cri-de-la-mer-un-temoignage-poignant-sur-l-emigration-clandestine/
"Aïcha Thiamine: La perte de leurs enfants dans ces conditions épouvantables fait déjà la vie de ces femmes trop dur. Mais la vie d'aujourd'hui qui se passe parce qu'il ya un temps pour combattre, aussi un temps pour rire, de danse et de noyer sa douleur et de tristesse. Tant qu'il ya vie, il ya toujours de l'espoir "

Documentaire  Le Cri de la Mer (Barca walla Barsakh) from AfricanewsITALY on Vimeo.

Immigration culture and survival.

In a wildlife documentary about survival on PBS, I did learn that lions tend to prey on weak and sick animals. Cheetahs prey on those that venture far from their herds. In the animal kingdom survival increase if you stay with your herd.  However it does not change anything for the unfortunate one that has to fight for his life or protect his family. Life and death depend on him alone.  And of course I did the parallel between immigration and survival. Immigration, migrations are often made to assure better, easier, safer life or just survival.  Immigration is a gain of opportunities, experiences but also an emotional loss due to distances. From culture shock, acculturation, integration, assimilation to multiculturalism, it is a stressful process of survival and adaptation.  As a child in the South of France I did meet gypsies. I am fascinated by their philosophy. They are travelers from there, everywhere and nowhere. Regardless of their burden, they are to an extend  at peace about not belonging anywhere. I always admired their resilience but the sadness in their flamenco remind us the pain, sacrifices, suffering and a beauty not always glamorous. In this global community, immigration culture is a culture in its own with its dreams, pains, codes, stress, joy and successes. If you spend one day looking at people around you, you can see it is not about race or ethnicity, not even about developed countries and developing countries. It is about survival of the fittest from lions, cheetahs to us.

Interesting to read:

Ethnicity, immigration, and psychopathology

By Ihsan Al-Issa, Michel Tousignant

http://www.wigix.com/item/1602616/Ethnicity-Immigration-and-Psychopathology-Springer-Series-on-Stress-and-Coping-by-Ihsan-Al-Issa

“While most studies of the stresses experienced by minorities, migrants, and refugees focus on North America, this work assumes an unusually broad scope. African-Americans, Latin Americans, Hutterites, Southeast Asians, and Native Americans are all considered in the context of the U.S. and Canada. However, separate chapters also discuss North Africans in France, Turks in Belgium, native culture in New Zealand, Jews inside and outside Israel, Gypsies in Europe, and Germans migrating west in their newly united nation. This unique look at the stresses facing such groups is an important resource for researchers, practitioners, and graduate students in clinical psychology, counseling, and psychiatric social work.”