reflection

This workshop was all about listening and how you listen to each other. We all must be heard because what we have to say matters. During the first part op this workshop we were listening to Clara talking with a video about meditation. The assigned things we needed to do were starters to listen better. After this first part we needed to go out without talking for ten minutes. When we came back it was our turn to talk with the video and act out all the movements that were assigned in the video.

During this whole day I felt very confronted with the fact of listening. Because I’m almost deaf on one side i’m used to listen very well if someone speaks to me. The last few years I didn’t even notice myself listening in a different way than others but during this workshop I was very aware of the fact that listening is not only hear what someone says but also understanding and trying to fit it in your world. Listening is not always agreeing but more about understanding.

When we arrived at the black archives building we were able to see a small exhibition about the life of Otto Huiswoud and how he experienced the Harlem Renaissance. After we had a quick view we went upstairs in a small room full with books about the black history. In this room we had a presentation about how racism etc. is still going and where you could still notice it.

I found it quite hard to stay focused because I couldn’t imagine that racism is still so alive in our society. It is not only about what people say but also about how people act when we talk about the black history. I noticed that there is so much more for me to learn and discover about the black history and about how our world is right now. During the talk I came to the conclusion that this subject still has a lot of emotions and opinions in it which also kind of scared me. I’m very curious about the different perspectives of people with a different background.

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After visiting the black archives we went to the Tropenmuseum. This is where we listened to a talk about ‘Muslim Cool’. Jasmijn Rana, Malique Mohamud and Mirjam Shatanawi talked about their view on this topic. ‘what does it mean to live today?’, ‘(self-)Representation’, ‘How do youth relate to hiphop?’, ‘Claiming space’, ‘What is cool nowadays?’, where one of the many questions that were asked during this presentation.

These talks were very interesting because it wasn’t about the history but more about the future. How could we fit in a new group of people more easily and how do we act around it? It was not about pushing them ut but more about showing their values and accepting it. Foreigners always to proof themselves while ‘european(??)’ white people don’t have to. This was part of the humanity game. In this talk we also discussed what cool is and how a whole community could show it. Which is weird if you ask me. I don’t think you should identify with a group or given name. A well said thing out of the audience was: ‘is praying 4 times a day not cool?’. This made my mind shift and listen to the talks even better. I questioned myself how can a culture be popular and go with trends and be cool when it is focused on religion. Something part of your background, body or identity shouldn’t be portrayed as something that goes with trend (because than we should switch religions, skin color, eye color to which would be shown in the latest fashion shows). When there is something cool, is there also something uncool?