Stories
News and thoughts for us.
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Becoming my Mother, Becoming Myself
When I think of my own relationship with my mother, I think of who she was before she decided to have children and how what she dealt with poured into her relationship with her children. The behaviours she has that I do not like and that affected me are exactly what she received from her own mother as well as a direct influence of her surroundings in Nigeria and what being a woman in that period meant. I definitely know that no matter what, I am my mother’s child and that this means that I will share similar behaviours with her but to truly become myself and separate myself from her own traumas, I have to find myself and reconcile with the rejections that can exist in my own becoming.
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The Artist as a Vessel Societies’ responsibility to Artists
There are artists whether that be painters, sculptors, poets, or songwriters who speak of creating art from a source which originates from a place that isn’t theirs alone as if something is being channelled through them. Socrates once said, “God takes away the minds of poets, and uses them as his minister.” And it is exactly that: some artists believe their art comes from a spiritual place within them, channelled by God/The Divine/The Source.
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Black Lives Matter: Discussing and eradicating anti-Blackness in the Muslim North African communities.
Decolonisation of all of Africa is still an on-going process, the hegemony and dominance of previous colonisers not entirely rooted out. While the work of equalising power relations and resolving conflicts that are residues of colonial divisions is vital. It is also important to decolonise racism and anti-blackness as concepts and practices. African Muslims are far from being a homogenous group, their diversity is rooted in their cultural backgrounds which often determines their religious affiliations. This makes the task of acknowledging and decolonising racism is quite challenging.
