Thursday, November 16, 2006

you cannot be serious!

Well well well...Looks like those 'masques' that Fanon discussed in his book should be applied to certain students in the university! Making racially charged comments in a country which is has wounds created by race is not a smart move. Simply because you cannot enter into the university because you have moved out of halls does not mean you can abuse the guards. It doesnt matter how much alcohol you have consumed. It doesn't matter how many drugs that you think make you cool that you have swallowed. You simply cannot abuse guards and say that they basically have a slave mentality because they work for someone! And you especially cannot say that if you are white and the guards are black! Lord, people, I think some people left their brains at the Parisian airports before they got connecting flights to Fort-de-France. Yes, someone ACTUALLY said that. There was a party and him and his friends couldnt get in because it was very late even though he was a university student, the guards here are automatically suspicious of men trying to come in late at night. But of course he felt like he had to drop an atomic bomb -- well done sweet heart! You are lucky that they were on duty because your face would have been blended into the tarmac of the road. Do you want to know how that would have been done? Yes, darling baby boy, you would have been steamrolled!

I cannot believe the stuff that comes out of people's mouths especially people who seem to be open-minded and have come to an ethnic country to learn more about its' culture. Does it pose underlying questions? I dont think so. It just shows that only one label can be applied: counterfeit.

~A

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

the island of pregnant women!

Pregnancy - for some that word conjures dread and fear yet for others, it is a new lease of life and the beginning of a new chapter. While I am definitely not ready for children yet, I think women who give life are amazing individuals especially in terms of nurturing their child. But my days, all the women I see these days in Fort-de-France (a capital of 100,000 people!) are all pregnant ! I am not joking - I think I saw at least 10 pregnant women and of course, that is nothing compared to the population of Fort-de-France, it got me thinking a lot about the position of the mother in society.

In Martinique, there are many non-married couples despite the fact that this is a strong Roman Catholic island. The reason for this apparently is because divorce is seen as a label of shame in the same way as 'A' for Adultress is. This has been blamed for allowing men to have multiple children by different women (but in my humble opinion, I think if a man wants to cheat and impregnate elsewhere, he'll do it regardless of whether there was a ring on his finger or not). Despite this, the child is the centre of society in this island - his or hers laughter is smiled upon and beaches arent necessarily full of tourists but mothers playing in the sea with their children. Children here have such a carefree existence because they are encouraged to be children, instead of wanting to grow up to quickly and wear makeup at 10 or 11 (which is too common in the UK).

However, underneath this sheath of happiness, the mother struggles. There is a saying in Martinican society that a child is bien né (well born) if it is lighter than its mother. This not only shows much about division between black people but shows a great deal about how a child is encouraged to surpass his or her mother in order to succeed. It gives me to impressions that the Martinicans who believe in this are people who do not have any self-esteem and will let society dictate to them how their children should be seen. Furthermore, it is an unwritten rule here for women to grudgingly accept their boyfriend or husband's potential infidelity unless he hasn't done it already. It poses interesting questions such as:
-- Will traditional societies create room for change or do we as women even subconsciously like these traditions?
--If a woman is submissive, does that make her less of a threat than a women who goes against the grain?

I don't know if I am sounding coherent but women's issues especially in the West Indies intrigue me greatly because of the similarities I see with Tanzania and African in general. I hope I haven't come across as a male basher but the men out there, make yourself heard ! I might seem like the queen of generalisation in this post but it is to get the juices flowing!

----- Off topic but on the weekend, I went to Montagne Pelee, Macouba, Basse-Pointe and Grand-Riviere of which are all in the North of Martinique. From the fishing village of Macouba, you can see the glorious rugged nature of the island of Dominica. Lonely Planet better employ me because I have morphed into a trekking girl!

It has been a good few couple of days, boosted by nice Guadeloupians and safe St.Lucians and St.Vincentians.

~A

Monday, November 06, 2006

it is all kicking off like the world cup final!

Surviving as a girl in Martinique is hard work! The men and their pervy stares and how the older women watch your every move like a hawk. Yet the most unnerving part of being a girl here is interaction with your fellow female peers. Case in point: a few weeks back, my friend and i were looking for a classroom that didnt exist! (The campus looks like an abandoned construction site). When a cleaner was telling me how to try and find this phantom room, a girl bumped into me and i turned and said "Pardon" - she then gave me her best "i'm badder than you so you better respect me and not bump into me stare". It was pretty average but the message was clear: don't try and mess with me. I do not understand behaviour like this for one simple reason: why do strangers try people that they dont know? Girls in general love doing this because it is all about superiority and not getting left behind so you have to assert yourself. I went to an all girls school for 7 years so I am aware of the bitchy stares and attitudes. I watched her back and that was that but it got me thinking about why most girls tear each other to pieces simply with their eyes. Is it because we are insecure or is it because we don't want anyone to take the piss out of us? I'd appreciate thoughts on this from the girls and the boys too...

Another funny note about the pseudo-gangster personalities here: there was a party on campus and of course, people were grinding and having a good time in a small space where 'zouk' music was being played. Some guy accidentally bumped into this one guy and the other guy pulled out a knife to shank him! Wtf! It is a campus party, you KNOB! The party was stopped of course but the boy remained defiant, thinking that he was being taken the piss out of or whatever. I was told this story by a good friend and it made me think: is life all about image or does immaturity of boys such as this ensure that people's fun is ruined?

My time in mq is almost over people! Term ends on the 27th so time is now limited...but so much hype happens in a week here so I am sure the news will keep flowing before I fly back.

~A