The art and practice of experiencing/Becoming our space_03

The third meeting of Issue 4 by guest curator Glenn Helberg will take place on December 9.

During the first meeting of The art and practice of experiencing/Becoming our space, we contrasted the story of the Africans left behind and the enslaved Africans. By bringing out the mechanism of divide and conquer used by the coloniser, it became clear that this is a system and that the descendants have not sold each other. The second meeting focused on the stories of the Maroons and Surinamese Indigenous people. We heard about the meetings, helping each other and our own resilience. At the same time, each group waged its own frantic struggle against the coloniser. The pacifications that the coloniser had entered into with the various groups due to the persistent resistance, continued to be systems of oppression, perpetuating the division between the various Maroons and Surinamese Indigenous groups.

During the third meeting, the stories of the Creoles, the Hindustani, Javanese and Chinese are centred. The stories about the first arrivals and meeting are shared. The meeting between these groups and the forced employment on the plantations in Suriname, where slavery slowly came to an end. With the kidnapping and forced crossing of new groups, the coloniser continued to make people and land their property. With Jomecia Oosterwolde, Devika Chotoe, Jonathan Tjien Fooh and Walther Tjon Pian Gi, we explore the encounters and the role that divide and conquer plays in stories about their own spirituality.

In collaboration with: Alydia Wever, Fré Calmes, Raul Balai and Kimberley Smit.