Maslaha UNCUT @maslaha - Tumblr Blog

Köln spricht - 5th-22nd February 2014

Next stop for The City Speaks, with British Council Germany. More information at: http://www.hda-koeln.de/2014-02-04.html

Hope to see you there!

May 2013 marked the culmination of Maslaha’s first project in Paris.

Over two days, the Gulbenkian Foundation’s conference room in the chic 8th district of Paris hosted 18 young women from various suburbs of Paris for a series of activities and workshops.

The mission: to enable young women to take an active role in determining their future, and to make career choices that truly reflect their aspirations and their potential.

Realising dreams

The girls shuffled into the room, not quite sure what to expect. Some came with friends; others came alone with shy smiles, self-consciously settling into a chair as they waited for something to begin. Athina (our partner in Paris, facilitator and programme designer) and her team of volunteers welcomed them all into a warm and open atmosphere.

Over the next two days the slightly detached expressions became alive with curiousity and recognition. The kindling of small questions and adolescent uncertainty in each young woman was fanned into flames of possibility and inspiration. Athina’s expertly crafted programme led them through a series of activities designed to explore themselves and build self-confidence, discuss opportunities for career paths, and to enable them to meet diverse role models from the same neighbourhoods as them – from Samira Ama, a doctor of biology, to Bouchra Aliouat, Secretary General of the KPGM Foundation, to Emira Zaag, who set up her own business specializing in site management, among many others.

Each of the girls formulated their own career plans, taking part in exercises in self-reflection and personality tests which enabled them to identify their strengths, weaknesses, and passions, and to build knowledge of the working world. The opportunity to meet and hear the stories of role models from similar backgrounds was extremely powerful – to hear the intricacies of complicated paths and human endeavour, charismatically told with humour and vigour, and to understand that very few of us embark on these journeys with easy and straightforward paths mapped out.

The emotional sharing circle at the end of the two days was a testament to the impact that Rêv'Elles had on the young women. There was a powerful sense of courage, determination, and self-belief. New ideas to explore and plans to put into practice. New friendships, and a new awareness of support and guidance; of possibility.

Some quotations from participants:

‘No one has ever told us we could do anything before. No one has ever asked us what we want to be.’

‘I really loved it. It helped me and still helps me.’

‘I helped me regain confidence in myself.’

‘I have come to know me, and not just what others thought of me.’

‘Rêv'Elles has changed my life.’

Why Rêv'Elles is important

These workshops were unique because there are very few projects like this in Paris – which target young women from such backgrounds and neighbourhoods, and use innovative practice in this way. As detailed in a previous blog, our extensive scoping exercise revealed an urgent need for projects like this which specifically target young women from disadvantaged areas.

Perhaps one of the most shocking things we learned from talking to the young women was how little they are encouraged or supported by their schools, or are actively discouraged when they express their aspirations. For example, as one of our role models said with disbelief:

‘Some of the girls told me that everyday when they go to school there is a poster on the wall that tells them that only a small number of people from the areas they live in will go onto professional careers or university. When they tell the teachers they want to do something or pursue a particular career, the teachers tell them not to bother as they won’t be able to achieve it, that the odds are against them. I am so angry about this.’

What this means for Maslaha

Our work in Paris has provided new challenges: our first long-term project based outside the UK in a country where projects cannot target groups based on religious or ethnic identity.

The concept of ‘laïcité’ and the legacy of the 1905 law on the separation of the Churches and the State contrasts with how religious and ethnic groups are directly acknowledged and represented in the UK. We estimate that about 85% of participants were from a Muslim background (based on those who requested halal food), all were from minority ethnic backgrounds, and many were second-generation immigrants. But it is very difficult to talk about this openly in France, and we even heard one or two comments criticizing the fact that this programme only targeted women.

This project was an opportunity for Maslaha to test its innovative approach to tackling social issues in a new context, to inform the development of a Beta version of a new toolkit which will enable others to replicate this approach. The opportunity to partner with Athina was extremely valuable, and Rêv'Elles has proven to her that she wants to set up an organisation to reach more young people with her pedagogical methods. Overall, this work has amplified our learning, and also proven that our approach can work in a completely different context. Our Beta toolkit is currently in development, and there will be more to come very soon…

What next

We are thrilled with the success of these pioneering workshops, and are intent on continuing this work through expanding Rêv'Elles and helping Athina to set up her own organisation.

The young women who took part in Rêv'Elles have stayed in touch – some have passed their exams and have opted to follow their career plans, others have even decided to repeat the year so that they can achieve better grades which will allow them to pursue dreams and passions which they discovered through the programme.

The positive energy this project has engendered continues, and the question from the passionate team of volunteers will hopefully soon be answered: ‘So when is the next Rêv'Elles?’.

#rev'elles #paris #toolkit #women #icanbeshe

Keep up with what Maslaha has been up to here!

Highlights include:

Talking from the Heart - the launch of our new mental health resource

Rev'Elles - workshops in Paris with young women from the banlieues

The beginning of new work in Marseilles

A new project with young male offenders and ex-offenders

The City Speaks exhibition travels to Marseilles

The continuing development of our toolkit detailing our way of working to tackle social issues in effective ways

Raheel will be at a conference on innovation in education in New York, and has been invited to speak at the World Islamic Economic Forum in London later this year

Read the newsletter to find out more...

#newsletter

Getting communities involved: Tackling mental health

A community wide approach to tackling mental health is the most efficient and sustainable way of tackling issues such as depression and anxiety in minority communities.

Our new health resource, Talking from The Heart, produced in partnership with AT Medics, London’s largest group of NHS GP practices, has been positively received by different sectors of the healthcare profession, community and faith organisations, and patients. We believe a large reason for this is because these same groups were involved in advising, creating and the disseminating the resource. This diverse collection of partners with their varied perspectives and skills has enabled us to develop a practical, innovative resource.

Other findings gleaned from producing this health resource include:

Tailored and personalised support in terms of mental health for minority communities is also lacking on a national level. Voices from minority communities remain unheard, underrepresented, and appreciated in service provision and policy, despite pockets of decent voluntary sector services.

There is a shift towards peer mentoring, training community members who may be mental health service users themselves to be ‘peer advocates’ within their own communities. The role of peer advocates is to provide some level of health care and support, in tandem with practitioners, sharing information and resources, and signposting services. This builds on the person’s own knowledge, experience, interests and skills, as mentioned above. Have a look at a report produced by NESTA in April about the growth of people-powered health, transforming communities from being seen as resource poor to resource rich through valuing their own experiences and skills.

#health #talkingfromtheheart #mental health #mental illness #community #islam

Recent reports have expressed worries that the historical relationship between Muslim societies and Britain, will be ignored by the Department of Education in the new draft history curriculum.

Understanding the role of Islam in the transmission of scientific and philosophical knowledge, for instance, is to better understand the Renaissance and the development of Europe. Importantly, it is also a vital way to understand the development of an Islamic culture and earlier Muslim societies. It is precisely this exchange of ideas that occurs across societies and across time that our Book of Travels (www.thebookoftravels.org) exhibition explores. Commissioned by the British Council the exhibition explores the continuous exchange of ideas and trade between Muslim societies and Europe. It shows that the idea of a monolithic civilisation is too blunt a notion and ignores complexity and nuance in the development of any society.

Using a 17th century Ottoman traveller, Evliya Celebi, as a dramatic device, we showed for instance the how the Ottoman Empire socially, culturally, and financially touched the lives of English people directly, literally shaping their tastes and the future development of the country. A document of the time lists major imports to England:

“The commodities they bringe from those partes are all sortes of Spices, Rawe Silke, Appoticarie drugs, India blewe, and Cotton Woll, as also yarne and cloaths made thereof, Galles, Currants, Sweet Oyle, Sope, Quiltes, Carpete and divers other commodities.”

One contemporary commentator reckoned that between 1590 and 1630 the number of people working in the city and suburbs of London alone who were employed in the “winding and twisting only of forraign raw silk” rose from 300 to “over fourteen thousand souls”.

This more insightful approach to history and the curriculum will also enable pupils to think more critically and creatively. It will enable young people to become individuals who can confidently re-work systems of knowledge, tear down silos, and solve some of our greatest social issues where our generation has failed. To enable this we need to create an environment where young people understand that history is unavoidably mutual and therefore complex and needs to be approached with a suitable amount of respect and open-mindedness.

#education #islam #evliya celebi #exhibition

Rêv’Elles – Empowering women to choose their own paths

After extensive research and consultation in Paris, we are all systems go for our latest pilot - 'Rêv'Elles' – which will target young women from the suburbs (banlieues) of Paris.

The dream: to allow young women from ZUS (Sensitive Urban Zones) areas to have the same chance of professional success as others.

The mission: To allow young girls from ZUS to decide on their own future and to make professional choices which are truly in line with their aspirations and their potential.

Maslaha touched down in Paris in mid-2012 with a mission to expand our practice, putting our approach to work in a completely different context. After initial research and meeting a lot of people, we decided to work with the fabulous Athina Marmorat on a project targetting young women from the suburbs, inspired by Maslaha’s UK based project: I Can Be She. Phase 1 of the project is now complete – research and consultation to develop a dynamic and engaging programme which addresses a very clear need.

Statistics relating to educational attainment, employment and occupation illustrate that young women from ZUS (and in particular the suburbs) face striking inequality of opportunity. In addition, our qualitative research found that young female high school students from the suburbs:

Lack self-esteem and confidence in themselves

Have a great deal of difficulty in expressing their dreams, their desires and in identifying their own strengths

Need to be supported in their own career choices, which lead to a tendency to go along with things rather than to choose their own direction

Lack role models who they can identify with and who can serve as an example – there are very few visible role models from similar backgrounds in mainstream media

Have a hard time understanding career ladders

Have a little ambition but a lot of energy

Are unfamiliar with and scared of the working world

Do not know business codes of conduct

Have a negative image of business (i.e. businesses exploit workers)

You can find out more about this research here.

The resulting programme – Rêv’Elles – is an exciting project which will enable young women to develop their confidence and career paths, and to achieve their dreams. Workshops will begin in May – we’re very excited! Much more to come…

'The most exciting thing that has happened to me': my experience in the Houses of Parliament

Guest blog by Canan Iscan

Attending a youth debate in the Houses of Parliament last month, with others from my secondary school, to discuss issues of violence against women, was perhaps the most exciting thing that has happened to me. It was all about young peoples' opinions; it was about us.

I was nervous at first. Coming from a poorer area of London and being a 14-year-old, I was not too sure if they would take me seriously. We were seated in a committee room where the discussion was to take place. Looking around me I saw that everyone was relaxed and it was not so bad after all. I felt grown up and mature; a burst of invigorating sensation filled my body. I always wanted to do something like this: be involved and help people. We were seated and people from different areas of Waltham Forest starting filing in, even the MP Stella Creasy! It was such an amazing opportunity for me to see a wider range of different people who were so passionate about this subject.

We were warmly welcomed and the discussion began. The panel answered all of our questions which were a great help to the young adults like me who were there. Jenny Hopkins, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, one of the panel members, gave expertise on how the law gets involved in situations where violence against women is taking place; I enjoyed this the most as I have an interest in that area.

We talked about forced marriage (FM), domestic violence, honour-based violence, female genital mutilation (FGM), and young people’s attitudes towards violence and relationships.

Towards the end of the discussion, with my heart beating rapidly, I gathered my wits to speak.

"Why are we teaching young women not to get raped, and not teaching young men not to rape?"

I was inspired to speak up by an inspiring article I had read:

When I was in college, a teacher once said that all women live by a ‘rape schedule.’ I was baffled by the term, but as she went on to explain, I got really freaked out. Because I realised that I knew exactly what she was talking about. And you do too. Because of their constant fear of rape (conscious or not), women do things throughout the day to protect themselves. Whether it’s carrying our keys in our hands as we walk home, locking our car doors as soon as we get in, or not walking down certain streets, we take precautions. While taking precautions is certainly not a bad idea, the fact that certain things women do are so ingrained into our daily routines is truly disturbing. It’s essentially like living in a prison - all the time. We can’t assume that we’re safe anywhere: not on the streets, not in our homes. And we’re so used to feeling unsafe that we don’t even see that there’s something seriously wrong up about it.

– Jessica Valenti

Overall, Maslaha’s vision and mission to help people is all what I stand for as a human being. After this event, it made me realise how important their work is and that I had wanted to do something for a long time, but wasn’t so sure how or where to start.

Maslaha gave me an amazing opportunity to contribute and begin. It changed my perspective of things. I have talked to many young girls and boys on their thoughts on the topics above as well as Maslaha as a whole and they have all been very supportive. It is a chance for young people to express their opinions and raise their voice, something which is not done so often. I wish to carry this on further and get more young people involved.

March 2013 newsletter

Keep up with what Maslaha has been up to here!

Highlights include:

Our One Billion Rising youth Question Time in UK Parliament

New developments in our work in Paris

The City Speaks exhibition continues to travel around Europe

Workshops in Oman at the Muscat Youth Summit

Islam and Social Enterprise in The Guardian

Partnering with the International Museum of Women on their global online exhibition - 'Muslima: Muslim women art and voices'

New education resources in development

Filming for our new mental health resource, aimed at Somali, Bangladeshi and Pakistani women

Read the newsletter to find out more...

Changing language, changing attitudes

In a committee room in the Houses of Parliament, a teenage girl stands and states: "When I was younger, my parents advised me not to get raped. They didn't speak to my brothers about the issue, about their own responsibilities in not raping women. Why is this okay? Why don't we discuss issues like this in school?"

A week earlier, in an East London classroom, a group of 15-year olds sat with their hands raised. All wanted to know more about issues such as FGM, forced marriage and domestic violence in school, as a part of the curriculum. Having only heard about FGM 30 minutes earlier, they believed it to be necessary and important for such issues to be discussed in schools and expressed surprise that this was not happening.

All school pupils learn about sex as a functional process in biology. The human aspect, covered in PSHE or citizenship, is optional and parents can choose to opt their children out on religious and cultural grounds.

However in numerous studies and surveys conducted in the UK over the last ten years, the overwhelming response has been that young people don't feel that the current formal set-up equips them well enough; they want to know more and want to be better informed.[1]

This was mirrored in some of the responses from the Young People's Question Time event in the Houses of Parliament in February:

Why aren't issues such as sexual abuse and domestic violence brought up in schools?

The younger generation are learning about relationships from soap operas, tweets and Facebook statuses

More positive male role models please

Why is violence against women much more socially accepted than racism?

Let's get beyond statistics please: these are real people we're talking about. More needs to be done

Why aren't young people involved more often in policy and making decisions that will effect them?

It is not something schools can afford to ignore - one in three 16-18 year-old girls have experienced unwanted sexual touching at school in the UK.[2]

When t-shirts like this can be produced and sold by well-known high-street brands, the discussion during the event last week turned to how necessary it is to find a new language when thinking and referring to issues surrounding gender-based violence. Honour-based violence is not about honour, race, religion, or saving face - it is violence. It's not honour-killing - it is murder. Female genital mutilation is not a racial, cultural or religious issue - it is child abuse. Not one of these can be excused, in any way – full responsibility must be faced up to by the perpetrator(s).

Help change our language by sharing this blog, and having a look at the work of organisations listed here. Make it your good deed of the day!

[1] e.g. ICM Poll 2006 (OBRUK website); Refuge, 2008: ‘Starting in Schools’; NSPCC/Uni of Bristol, 2009: ‘Partner exploitation and violence in teenage intimate relationships’

[2] YouGov poll 2010 (OBRUK website)

The common bond between social enterprise and Islam

The idea of facilitating social good has been an integral part of Islam since its inception. Within Islam striving for the common good is a necessity for all communities, Muslim or not, as well as preventing social harm.

It’s no surprise really that the practice and tenets of religion have so much in common with the growing area of social enterprise. Both share common ground in pursuing social justice and a sense of compassion. Both also increasingly share an evolving understanding of what it means to work with communities rather than simply doing good to them.

Professor Mohammad Hashim Kamali in his book, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, cites examples of scholars, academics, and philosophers discussing the need for a collective effort when applying Islamic law to social issues. The diverse nature of a country or society, and complexity of social issues demands input from the whole community, for example experts in medicine if dealing with issues around organ donation.

This collective effort has been the driving force behind much of our work whether it is in health, education, projects on identity or exploring Islam’s cultural and artistic past. Our health work (www.caringforyourheart.org) has included the participation of GPs, patients, Islamic scholars, dieticians, film-makers, Sure Start centres, supermarkets, and schools. This kind of rich diversity, this mix of people is our most valuable asset during our projects and leads to unexpected innovation, new ways of addressing long-standing problems and new networks of collaboration for the future.

Our health resources combine faith and medical information. They also use film, calligraphy, the azan and animation to help reinforce health messages, while creating a new vocabulary for health or any other area of our work. They are used in GP surgeries and hospitals but also in libraries, internet cafes, community centres and schools in Birmingham and London. Our work permeates everyday environments and the resources become an organic process.

In the course of our work we meet people who will never be heard in the mainstream media or give lectures to audiences of thought-leaders, practitioners and policy makers. Yet these very people in their consistent struggle to improve their communities are an immense untapped source of knowledge.

The growing field of social entrepreneurship and innovation must above all else take into account the collective effort. Equally the diverse nature of Islam and its creative message of the common good has much to offer Muslim communities and wider society.

#socialenterprise #socialinnovation #islam

Young people's attitudes towards violence and relationships

February 7th will see young people, decision makers and practitioners come together in the Houses of Parliament to discuss issues of violence against women. It will form a space to raise awareness, question, explore and encourage action. As a part of the global One Billion Rising movement to prevent gender-based violence, the event is supported by Stella Creasy MP.

It would seem a poignant time at which to push for a national overhaul given the news from Delhi, Tahrir Square, and indeed Britain: in 1998, a UK study found[1] that one in two young men and one in three young women believed there to be some circumstances where it was acceptable to hit a woman or force her to have sex.

In 2005, a survey found[2] that almost half of teenage girls thought it acceptable for a boyfriend to be aggressive towards his partner, and a 2009 study[3] found that a third of teenage girls in relationships had experienced unwanted sexual acts, with one in 16 having been raped.

Two women die per week in the UK as a result of domestic-related violence, accounting for 40% of all female homicide victims[4]. In the US, this statistic is three per day.[5]

Surveys, reports and literature, based on the opinions of thousands of teenagers, all seem to point to the same conclusion: there is a very high tolerance for accepting or condoning violence in relationships, particularly amongst young people. This is translating into alarming realities.

These complex issues ultimately lead to two questions: how have things got so bad, and what can we, collectively, do about it?

Many reports have been critical of the government’s lean towards judicial matters rather than having a more preventative outlook.

In schools, where education can naturally address this, there are two main issues:

1. A lack of confidence/support

Regardless of impetus, schools and teachers are often reticent to introduce these issues because of a lack of confidence and support. Although resources do exist, it is still a big step to begin exploring such sensitive and complex issues, and as yet it is not compulsory to discuss violence against women and related issues as part of the curriculum. The topics fit into the ‘either do it well or not at all’ bracket. Teacher training programmes are available however, helping to increase teacher confidence, background knowledge and an awareness of how to approach the issues. Have a look at Women’s Aid, AVA Project, and the White Ribbon Campaign, just for starters.

2. Issues are seen as ‘targeted’

It is sometimes the case that if these issues are taught in schools at all, they are taught to a cherrypicked group of pupils seen as ‘targets’ or ‘potential victims.’ Should violence against women be seen only as an issue for women? Should forced marriage be seen only as an issue for Asians? In general, we need to move past this approach and begin addressing all issues collectively, but sensitively, as a school or local community.

All studies referenced here (plus many, many more) show that young people want to know more; want to be better informed and don’t think the current setup equips them well enough. THERE is the impetus to move things along.

Please pick up the gauntlet and email ONE of your local primary or secondary schools, or the school you used to attend, to encourage them to begin using the Women’s Aid Expect Respect toolkit. Share with friends, family, colleagues.

While addressing the issues is a good step, thumbs up to Wales who have taken the more preventative, and positive, approach of teaching about healthy relationships. We seem to be a way off this yet in England - but hopefully not for long.

We simply cannot have another generation of young people believing and accepting violence to be the norm.

If you’re interested in knowing more, please see: maslaha.org/obr.

*Update 30th Jan* A Parliamentary debate and vote for requiring sex and relationship education (SRE) in schools throughout England has now been confirmed to take place on 14th February 2013, the One Billion Rising global day of action. Encourage your own MP to attend! More info and letter/email template: http://obruk.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/ask-your-mp-to-support-one-billion-rising/

[1] ‘Young people’s attitudes towards violence, sex and relationships’ 1998, Zero Tolerance (http://www.zerotolerance.org.uk/)

[2] ‘Teen abuse survey of Great Britain’ 2005, NSPCC/Sugar magazine

[3] ‘Partner exploitation and violence in teenage intimate relationships’ 2009, NSPCC/University of Bristol

[4] ‘Crime in England and Wales 2003-4’ Home Office Statistical Bulletin 10/04

[5] ‘Bureau of Justice Statistics Crime Data Brief, Intimate Partner Violence, 1993-2001’ February 2003, US Government

#icanbeshe #onebillionrising #event

2013: Building momentum...

WOW what a start to 2013...

One Billing Rising campaign: Maslaha is rising...

We've been busy collaborating with Stella Creasy MP and several schools around London to organise a Question Time event in Parliament. Young people will have the opportunity to put questions relating to domestic violence and related issues such as FGM and Forced Marriage to a panel of experts. They'll be taking part in the wider One Billion Rising campaign, including producing their own films, organising events within their schools and colleges, and of course joining the global dance on the day itself. Not long to go until the big day...

Mental health

Our project focusing on mental health in Somali, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi communities is progressing well. We've been working with psychotherapists, local community groups, GPs surgeries and others to produce the script for a film which will tackle negative stigma associated with mental health, and also increase understanding of the support services available. Filming will start soon, but until then you can find out more here...

Paris/Marseille

The research period for our project in Paris has come to an end and soon we'll begin putting our plans into action. We've been speaking to youth workers, organisations working with young people out of employment, and many more to devise an exciting plan to help young women from disadvantaged areas in the suburbs of Paris by focussing on issues around identity, education and employment. We'll also be starting work in Marseille this year. More to come soon...

The City Speaks

The City Speaks exhibition had a very successful year in 2012, and now it's set to open in Leipzig, Malta and Marseille very soon. Follow the exhibition's journey and read fascinating excerpts here...

#upcoming

yourcityspeaks

Susie McKenna, Creative Director of the Hackney Empire, speaks passionately about the power of the arts at the launch of Maslaha’s ‘The City Speaks’ exhibition at the UN Palais des Nations, Geneva.

#thecityspeaks #exhibition #british council

yourcityspeaks

Listen closely to flamenco music and you can hear the stories of Andalucia’s rich past – the Arab, gitano [gypsies, many of whom had travelled from India], Jewish and Christian influences that are all part of the cultural fabric of southern Spain.

Flamenco originally consisted purely of the voice [cante], accompanied only by a rhythm. The other components – baile [dance], togue [guitar] and the jaleo [literally, ‘hell-raising’ or bringing the music to life through foot stamping, hand clapping and shouts of encouragement] – are often accompanied by a certain mysterious quality described as ‘duende’. This word captures the intimate transformation caused by the depth of emotion within the music.

In the 18th century, flamenco clubs [Café Cantantes] began to spring up in the main cities of Andalucia. Over the following decades, flamenco spread across Andalucia as audiences were captivated by the romance of this exciting and passionate music.

Image: Flamenco, 25 December 2010, flickr, Creative Commons license. Image by Fernando García. Flamenco combines many elements of Andalucia’s past. Once considered to be the music of the poor and oppressed, its popularity grew in the 18th century as flamenco clubs spread across Andalucia.

This post is an excerpt from The City Speaks exhibition.

#thecityspeaks #exhibition #british council

Leveson: Press and the public interest

In the report of the Leveson Inquiry, Lord Justice Leveson states:

‘I know how vital the press is – all of it – as the guardian of the interests of the public, as a critical witness to events, as the standard bearer for those who have no one else to speak up for them.

Nothing in the evidence that I have heard or read has changed that. The press, operating properly and in the public interest, is one of the true safeguards of our democracy.

As Thomas Jefferson put it: “Where the press is free and every man able to read, all is safe.”’

As a ‘cornerstone of our democracy’, the press has a responsibility to represent the voices of the unheard. Yet mainstream media frequently trips over awkward feet as it tries to accommodate minority groups. This is characterized by the last minute struggle to find ‘representative voices’ for news programming, which all too often results in either the same voices being wheeled out time and again, or their substitution by well-meaning white, middle class, male expert commentators.

Some of the recent reports on the Leveson inquiry chimed with the messages of an organisation which Maslaha connected with on the outskirts of Paris.

‘Bondy Blog’ was born in the fire of the riots which focused the world’s attention on the suburbs of Paris in November 2005. While mainstream press struggled to capture and understand why the youth were rioting, journalists from a Swiss magazine called L’Hebdo moved into the suburb of Bondy – immersing themselves in daily encounters as guided by local young people, who also protected them from the angry backlash against negative media coverage of the crisis. In return, the journalists trained these local youths in blogging and journalistic skills.

When the Swiss journalists left Bondy, these young people continued to drive the blog forward, and Bondy blog is now a small and punchy social enterprise which continues to give voice to the suburb.

I visited Bondy Blog and met Nordine Nabili, its Chief Executive, last week to talk about Maslaha’s work in Paris. He described Bondy blog as a form of participatory media which offers a way to work towards real solutions for social inequality by opening an inclusive conversation.

The blog is driven by volunteers and dedicated part-time workers with a team of around 40 bloggers. The team is committed to producing at least two blogs per day, and a priority is to make sure the bloggers are always paid to recognize the value of their work. They also produced a monthly TV show.

‘We are not an association (a charity); we don’t offer a solution to the problem. But we talk about the things not talked about, the real problems in the banlieu. Always our legitimacy is called into question because we are not like other media, with journalists from high-level schools. Yet all the media are reading what we are doing.‘

Nordine extends the glass ceiling analogy to people from the suburbs, highlighting the huge social inequalities of the system and the lack of diversity that is a visible problem in the French media. He describes how you cannot become a ‘legitimate’ journalist unless you have attended one of the expensive, established journalism schools.

Bondy Blog has found a way around that, and now runs its own journalism courses, accredited by École Supérieure de Journalisme de Lille. These courses train 12 aspiring journalists from disadvantaged backgrounds per year, introducing them to networks and enabling them to make connections which can help their careers. The blog demands that all collaborators visit Bondy suburb, only 15 minutes from Gare du Nord station in Paris. As a consequence, the blog’s small offices in the Parisian suburb have entertained a number of high profile journalists, and even a surprise visit from Samuel L. Jackon in 2010. The course has proven hugely successful, becoming very well known among journalists in France.

Back to the UK, and the Leveson report’s 13 pages on newspaper treatment on women and ethnic minorities, which states that:

‘The evidence of discriminatory, sensational or unbalanced report in relation to ethnic minorities, immigrants and/or asylum seekers, is concerning’ (p 673),

and that:

‘The evidence demonstrates that sections of the press betray a tendency, which is far from being universal or event preponderant, to portray Muslims in a negative light’… ‘The tendency… is not limited to the representation of Muslims, and applies in a similar way to some other minority ethnic groups’. (p671)

A truly ‘free press’ implies access and relevance for all, where diverse communities are empowered to have their voices heard, and are able to challenge negative stereotypes in an inclusive conversation. Bondy blog’s model is one that can be replicated – a challenge to establishment press through the legitimacy of real life experience.

#blog #paris

A different class of collaboration

Professor Michael Sandel, a leading thinker on political philosophy and a professor at a Harvard university, in a recent lecture at the LSE explained how true democracy happened when we learned to live with each others differences and learned to bump up against one another. Historically, this country has been adept at this often messy “bumping” for centuries with the constant flow of migration of people and ideas.

This kind of rich diversity, this mix of communities, leads to unexpected innovation and new ways of addressing long-standing problems. During our projects which straddle a number of sectors, the mix of people are our most valuable asset and lead to new networks of collaboration.

For instance in our Book of Travels exhibitions –www.thebookoftravels.org - the team of contributors included, Ottoman historians, sculptors, musicians, and private art collections. Our health work (www.caringforyourheart.org) has included the participation of GPs, patients, Islamic scholars, dieticians, film-makers, Sure Start centres, supermarkets, and schools.

Both these projects are examples of a wider community effort, made up of people and organisations who perhaps would not normally work together, and it is this variety that creates a rich and more impactful resource.

Some people have argued, however that not everyone is able to participate in or create these networks, especially those from deprived communities. How can we ensure that the growing field of social entrepreneurship and innovation does not become another kind of old boys network, led only by people who have attended the “right” universities, or happen to hang out at the right hubs?

These appear to be members of voiceless communities because they do not have a significant public profile but they are potentially far more innovative and useful in tackling social issues than the more established or “creative hubs of the moment”. In fact they have a huge voice in the cities they work in through the impact of their beliefs and actions.

Any old boys’ network, of any kind, will lack the true spark of imagination, as their vision and understanding of society is seen through a “group lens” of experience and memory. These networks need to be opened up. Less well connected organisations need to learn how to leverage social, political, financial and cultural capital in order to help create systemic change.

The idea of being able to have this fluidity and understand the potential of different groups is vital to innovation and social justice. Saul D Alinksy, the prolific American community organizer, whose ideas went onto influence among others Barack Obama, said that, “the organizer in order to be part of all can be part of none” (from Rules for Radicals, Saul D Alinsky, Vintage Books, 1971)

yourcityspeaks

Street art has existed in cities for centuries: creative marks in public spaces often by anonymous faces; art free of official sanction. Street art, street performance and street theatre appear as organic modes of expression, grown in the streets, climbing on to the walls from the pavements, and touching the everyday urban subconscious. Enduring works of street art have become city symbols, even tourist attractions.

The word ‘graffiti’ has its roots in the Italian word ‘graffiare’ – to scratch or carve – and generally refers to any form of public marking. This form of urban expression dates back to Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire and Mesopotamia. Graffiti has long been associated with alternative forms of expression, strongly linked with the growth of subcultures and political resistance. However, these alternative modes of expression have become so popular that they have even been appropriated by commercial advertising. The work of street artists such as Banksy has been shown in established art galleries, ‘legitimising’ it as a genre of art.

Now cities around the world host annual street art festivals, when well-known artists are invited from around the world [or just show up]. The streets become an open gallery with no closing hours, and each empty space becomes a canvas. The open spirit of street art emphasises the importance of each individual’s interaction with society and their surroundings.

El Guitarrista’ by El Mac, 2011 - Avant-Garde Urbano, an international festival of artistic interventions in the urban space, is held in Tudela de Navarra, Spain. LA-based artist El Mac described this piece on his blog: ‘The mural was painted in an old Gypsy neighbourhood… the history and culture in this area runs deep. Christians, Jews and Muslims have all shaped the identity of old Tudela, and it was inspiring to soak some of this in’.

Dan Witz - Nuart is an annual street art festival based in Stavanger on the West Coast of Norway. This artwork is by American artist Dan Witz.

Phlegm - At Nuart. This artwork is by British artist Phlegm.

Branimirova Street graffiti wall - MUU street art museum is a project dedicated to forming a more coherent street art scene in Croatia. It is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In 2010 Branimirova Street was transformed in a MUU project to bring art into neglected areas of the city.

Images: El Mac at Avant-Garde Urbano 2011, 5 October 2011, Creative Commons license. Image by Ana Alvarez-Errecalde and Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada, flickr. Dan Witz installations, 29 September 2011, Creative Commons license. Image by kalevkevad, flickr. Work by Phlegm, 29 September 2011, Creative Commons license. Image by kalevkevad, flickr. Branimirova Street graffiti wall, 28 September 2011. Image by Josephine Dorado, flickr.

This post is an excerpt from ‘The City Speaks’ exhibition.

#thecityspeaks

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