- Give three compelling examples of how cultural issues affect your project.
From what I have gathered during our last lecture, there is a different emphasis on time in Sierra Leone. I am used to the hustling, bustling world where time is money so you cannot waste it. This approach has led me to live a very structured, scheduled life where I know what I am doing every minute of the day. However, it seems that SIerra Leone may be different. From what have learned it is much more relaxed and laid back. People think of time as more circular and infinite whereas western culture has enforced my perception of time as something finite and measurable. So, when Kanjan gave his example in class of his lecture being scheduled at 1 PM and people showing up at 2:30 PM, I was a bit taken aback. Here, some people would take offense, however the concept of time is just seen differently.
Another cultural issue I need to be mindful of is religion. I grew up in a very liberal, agnostic environment where my religious views did not dictate much of my lifestyle. However, the majority of people in Sierra Leone are muslim, with a high population of Sunni Muslims. I think that this difference in culture isn’t really an issue, however navigating the society of Sierra Leone is something I need to be mindful about. I cannot be as loud about bodily issues as I am here or as uncensored with my language. So when I go out into the field I need to be aware of how I carry myself in order to respect the community I am working with.
However, my main concern of what will affect the project is how women are treated in Sierra Leone. Women have extremely limited reproductive rights. In fact, women could be forced into marriage without consent until 2007. This will be hard to navigate coming from a country with progressive women’s rights – I need to be careful not to control the narrative of my project and create a biased story surrounding this. THis is imperative because I am working on the Safe Motherhood project – a documentary focusing on the initiatives being taken to improve the maternal mortality rate. Most of the subjects I work with will have firsthand experience with this area of oppression, so I must be mindful when navigating my topics.
- Have you experienced or observed any of these social situations at home? Describe at least three such situations.
Growing up, I lived in a very diverse environment surrounded by people from every walk of life. One of my friends was from Palestine and in eighth grade, she told me that she was in an arranged marriage since elementary school. Now, she was not married but she was already promised to a boy our age that was the son of her parent’s friends. This was a shock to me, but she was okay with it so I was okay with it. I think this situation resonates with the cultural differences I will be experiencing on site – it is not my job to enforce my beliefs on the lives of others.
Or in terms of censoring myself a bit, when I visit my grandparents I have to tone it down. They are very kind, conservative people that don’t really appreciate it when I am outspoken about the things we disagree on. Sometimes, it is best not to talk politics on Thanksgiving – out of respect for the people around me.
Lastly, I have many friends that view time differently than me. Sometimes I will make plans and they don’t come through until hours after they were supposed to. As much as it drives me crazy to be late, I have started to learn that there is no reason to rush for most things. Time will continue and I will live on, I will just have to make say things are an hour before they actually start.
- Give three examples of cultural practices that can be leveraged to address community / market problems.
One networking tool in SIerra Leone is Whatsapp – it is the primary communication source. Currently, my team is looking to use it for a part of our marketing campaign because of how accessible and popular it is.
Another wonderful cultural practice is the Midwives of Sierra Leone. We have already covered a local midwifery school, but if we were able to document the life of a midwife by following them throughout their day, it would be an interesting way to show how one community member can have such a big impact.
Also, by implementing more contraceptive health and family planning services in schools, the education system of Sierra Leone can help lower the maternal mortality rate. This may be a bit harder to do considering how controversial it would be, but it could make a hige difference.