Let’s meet up sometime!

If I had to pick a phrase that I utterly loathe in the English language, then this would be it!
It's
So vague
So open-ended
So inactive
So lazy

In fact, I may not be very fluent, but I'm almost 100% sure such a phrase does not exist in my mother tongue, Runyoro.

Back in the day, I used to say it a lot. Weeks, months, YEARS even, would go by… and ‘Some Time’ would never materialise.
Last month, I had a telephone conversation with a friend, which ended with him saying
“I really enjoyed this conversation. We should do this more often. Let’s get together sometime”
I responded, “When you say, let’s get together sometime, do you have a specific date in mind? Because if there isn’t, I can see us having this telephone conversation in a few months time, ending with the same sentiments… until the next telephone conversation”
There was a pause on the other end
Him: “You know, now that you say it, that is actually true. I never thought of it that way” We arranged to meet for drinks the following week

The first thing he told me was
“You know what you said the other day really challenged me.”
Apparently he was speaking to another friend, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, and was just about to end the conversation in his usual fashion, when he stopped himself and then made a definite appointment. In that moment, he realised this why he had drifted away from so many friends over the course of the years.

Now I can 'see' you my fellow Africans howling! "We are not ‘bazungu*’ who always make appointments to see people."
Tell me! When is the last time you met up with your friends… YES… you who live in London on your own, and the only contact you make with your friends is either by telephone or email. Do you even know what they look like these days?
(Don’t get me started on that particular peeve of mine. I hate the way phones have replaced face-to-face communication!)

Life in London is way too busy for vague phrases like ‘Let’s meet up sometime’

* white person or foreigner in Swahili language

bfm (black film maker) International Film Festival

I heard about this festival by chance. The person who told me about it, incidentally heard about it by chance too! All the people I talked to hadn’t heard about it either. And this was quite a significant event because it was the Festival's 10th Anniversary plus it had a lot more British film directors this time around in a field that is usually dominated by American film makers. I think Bfm’s publicity department will need to rethink it's marketing strategy!

On Tuesday I went to the British Film Institute for the black short film awards, hosted by Tameka Epsom (of ‘Three Non Blondes’ fame). She was very funny, but had a tendency to go on….and on….
The films screened were,
1) ‘Much Ado About A Minor Ting’, directed by Jesse Lawrence, set in the gang culture of Ladbroke Grove. It was funny and exaggerated in some places, but disturbing for me as I watched the dangerous reality teenagers have to contend with daily. It won best cinematography award
2) ‘Survivor’ directed by Nicole Volavka – dealt with the subject of political refugees and the lingering trauma suffered by them. I could relate to this film because I was born a refugee - my parents could not go back to Uganda during Idi Amin’s regime. The film struck home for me because it related to people from the countries of Sudan and Rwanda - which border Uganda. People here have no empathy for the immigrants who have suffered tremendously. I cried afterwards– for the characters in the film or for myself... I'm not sure. It won best script award.
3) ‘Man, Broken’ directed by Pezhmaan Alinia, about a man’s grief after the murder of his child on the streets. This was about 5 minutes long and I couldn’t believe it when I saw the credits rolling. Personally I thought, it needed a bit more? I had to choke back a laugh when the director said that it took him 6 months to do the film. 6 MONTHS?
4) ‘Win, Lose or Draw’ directed by Lawrence Coke concerning the experiences of the first Jamaican arrivals in the 1960’s. It was a mix of documentary, interviews with people who had come over on the Windrush and drama. The audience picked it as their best film
5) ‘One Of Us’, directed by Clint Dyer concerning the dilemma of a boy choosing between his career and that of his close friends.

Interesting evening! The freebies were also quite good – books by black writers. Makes a refreshing change from hair products!
I wouldn’t be me, if I didn’t comment on the nice selection of good-looking Brothers in the house! Afterwards while we were mingling at Benugo’s bar, listening to the sounds of Blacktronica, I had to restrain myself from gushing.

I think I should attend events like these more often ;-)

At the Ally Pally Fireworks, 8 November 2008

From left to right: Mikey, me, Krystle, Beth and Stuart

Jumping On The OBAMANIA Wagon

Barack Obama’s election for me, just made my day
My eyes were glued to the TV all afternoon watching the news replaying the moment his election was announced, the scenes of jubilation in America (and Kenya!), tears rolling down Jesse Jackson’s face, the MAN himself, and that speech! I was crying and laughing at the same time and floated on this high to Home Group, wanting to talk about it and rejoice.
Julian brought up the subject
“I know you are not from Kenya, but Uganda is pretty close by. You must be really pleased about Obama’s election”

Me: “Yeah, it’s a good thing, not just for Kenyans, but for all black people everywhere”
Martin, says: “You mean it’s not a good thing for white people?”
He said it in such an aggresive way that I didn’t even bother to respond to him. I wished that I had gone to my black friends celebration, because they would appreciate this momentous occasion.

The fact is, racism exists in Britain, institutionalised, mostly subtle but sometimes outright. There’s this false belief that UK doesn’t have it as bad as the USA.

Unless you are from an ethnic minority group, you probably won’t be affected by it. Martin, being white middle class, wouldn't experience it at all!

A black friend once told me that in school when she went for guidance on pursuing a career in children’s social work, the careers advisor told her she was wasting her time and should consider a career in sports or music. Perhaps the advisor meant well, after all these 2 areas appear to be the places where black people make a success of things

Benjamin Zephaniah sums it up in his poem ‘Three Black Males’*

We are only in white nations
When we win them gold in sports

What if you aren’t gifted at sports or music? What’s the point in trying anything else?
The only role models we have in any positions of influence are a mere handful. And even they tend to distance themselves from our community, moving out to more ‘respectable’ (read…non-black) neighbourhoods, marrying and raising their kids ‘white’. The irony is that in this society, if you have ‘a drop of black, you is black.’ When the poor kids come out of their cocoon, they experience a culture shock because they discover that they are still victims of the stereotyping that their parent tried to get away from. And it hurts them worse, because they didn’t see it coming.

My pet peeve is when Africans change their name to something that sounds more ‘western’ to improve their career prospects. I was horrified when my niece changed her last name to ‘Brown’. Why on earth would you WANT to work in a place that won’t hire you because your name sounds foreign? Obama has proved that you can still rise to the highest office in a nation, in the world even, with a foreign sounding name?

So after this rant, how do I end this?

If Obama’s election has achieved anything, it has shown the changing perceptions of black people in today’s world. I acknowledge that his rise was not a solo effort. Lots of people like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr, the whole civil rights movement, even Condoleeza Rice, helped to pave the way for him.
Obama has challenged and overcome some of the stereotypes, and I have hope that my little black nephew, who is only 6 now, will have a better chance of pursuing his dreams. Who knows, these dreams may take him in the direction of sports or music (the last I heard I think it was super hero), but at least I know with such a powerful example of Obama, he’ll have the freedom to know that these aren't the ONLY options.

God bless Barack Obama. Keep him and family safe May he have a successful term in office. (Heck even 2 terms in office!!) Guide his decisions; surround him with advisors who want him to succeed, and not fail!