'Another history of the world'
How an art exhibition in Marseille gave me more hope and strength to carry on with my non-western centric writing...
Dear readers,
These past few weeks have led me away…
To Dakar, Senegal; to Bristol & London; and to Marseille, in the south east of France.
There, I caught up on its last day with an exhibition at the main city museum, Mucem, which made me feel much better about my work and beliefs, despite the state of the world and the lack of representation of African, Arab, Asia, Caribbean and South American perspectives here in Europe…
Here is why, with a few other representations of other, if not maybe better, places.
Marseille
The show was put together to give a little insight on how to understand world history through stories and representations from an African, Asian, American, Pacific and Arab points of view.
If Europeans "were able to place themselves at the center of the world," the curators (Fabrice Argounès, Camille Faucourt and Pierre Singaravélou) said, "other peoples and other empires" did the same, which is now too often ignored in the West.
Continuing with further messages and representations from outside the Western world, it was a delight to be walking through this perspective.
Paris - Palestine
In the French capital, on Saturday 16 March, the French Algerian artist Dalila Dalleas Bouzar performed for Gaza, in order to counter-balance the media’s biased narrative, largely dominated by Israel’s point of views, as media watchdogs have described.
Here is one image from Dalila’s performance:
For more, this video: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8umm8y
And this Twitter post: https://twitter.com/MagLesauvage/status/1769076231947853936
One perspective I also recommend, and wrote about:
Uganda
Bobi Wine's fight for democracy in Uganda continues on the big screen
Ugandan pop star-turned-opposition leader Bobi Wine is at the heart of a documentary that charts his electoral challenge to long-time ruler Yoweri Museveni. The film was nominated for an Oscar.
Issued on: 12/03/2024
Bobi Wine: The People's President, directed by Christopher Sharp and Moses Bwayo, puts the focus on Bobi, his supporters and his wife Barbara "Barbie" Itungo Kyagulanyi, an author, philanthropist and human rights activist.
Praised at festivals all over the world, it is now in American cinemas, and Wine hopes the Oscar nomination will help it reach a bigger audience.
This film tells the story of Wine, who rose to fame in his country, Uganda, as a musician, and whose popularity led him to enter a career in politics.
He first became a Member of Parliament, then in 2021 he ran as a presidential candidate, facing Yoweri Museveni, who has been in power in Uganda since 1996.
The film captures Wine and his supporters during an election campaign that ended in prison.
For more, read here: https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20240312-bobi-wine-s-fight-for-democracy-in-uganda-continues-on-the-big-screen
Senegal
As Senegalese citizens finally get to vote, I talked to a development economist about how to bring wealth and peace to West Africa, according to what its people really need, not what former European powers want:
Senegal's opposition promises new national currency: Could it be done and what could it change?
The economy is expected to prove a key issue in Senegal's upcoming presidential election. With campaigning for the 24 March polls in full swing, the opposition coalition says replacing the colonial-era CFA franc with a national currency would be the best way to tackle inequality and boost employment.
Issued on: 16/03/2024 - By: Melissa Chemam
For more on this, listen to my new podcast:
The long path to Senegal's troubled presidential elections
Issued on: 22/03/2024
This is a big election year for Africa, with 16 countries heading to the polls. Close attention is being paid to the delayed presidential vote in Senegal – a West African beacon of democracy that's been facing increasing instability. RFI spoke to author and economist Ndongo Samba Sylla in the capital Dakar.
RFI is renewing its Spotlight on Africa podcast, and the first episode zeroes in on one of the continent's biggest news stories.
Senegal was plunged into political crisis when President Macky Sall unexpectedly postponed elections that had been due to take place by the end of February.
Protests erupted from those supporting opposition candidates, as well as from all corners of civil society. The polls were finally rescheduled for 24 March.
Voters say they're worried about unemployment and a lack of opportunities for young people – many of whom are quitting the country in search of a better life elsewhere.
Ndongo Samba Sylla helps us to better understand where the unrest has taken the heaviest toll – and what's really at stake in Sunday's election.
Finally… if you feel like hearing more, a great conversation on journalism and “the rest of the world”:
Unlearning Western Bias in Journalism | Ibrahim Abusharif | afikra عفكرة Podcast
As journalists on the ground in Gaza are targeted, the “truth” weaponised, and an information war for the ages unravels, we sat down with Professor Ibrahim Abusharif to discuss the construction of narratives, framing terminologies, and the ethics of journalism.
Delving into questions of decolonising journalism, the boundaries between storytelling and reportage, and pushing back against established journalistic practices, we explore the state of (war) reporting and how coverage of the Arab world has changed over time.
Professor Abusharif points us towards the Al Jazeera effect and what he sees as a destabilisation of western dominance over media narratives. He also offers some tips for how to decolonize pitches and reporting and some recommendations for what to read.
A final note: I’ve decided to stop posting on Facebook, for all the reasons in the world about Meta - bias, tweaked algorithm, invisibility.
But also because it seems that people’s habits have turned the network into a simple online requests board for middle-class, middle-aged online drifters who have abandoned their outdoor social life…
I’m still using Instagram, but mostly because artists are very active there and we still manage to connect.
Voilà.
See you again soon here, or on my personal blog.
Do share this newsletter if you enjoyed it, and if you have a minute. It’s free… It’s just a way to open discussions…
Thanks for reading… and listening!
I’ll be back soon, with more ideas, I hope.
Best,
melissa
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Melissa Chemam
Journalist @ RFI English
Music/Art Writer @ New Arab, ART UK...
Blog: https://melissa-on-the-road.blogspot.com/
Site: https://sites.google.com/view/melissachemam
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@melissaontheroad