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kondorong
Gambia
4380 Posts |
 Posted - 23 May 2006 : 18:19:23
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| Unless there are two Gambias. |
“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always.” |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 18:30:42
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ok, less put it this way . have you ever been in a compound with a/ maid (s).if so did you specifically recruit from a specific 'pool'. then its only in your gambia not ours.
i have seen it all some are more common than others thats all. and if you don't see how offensive your comments are/can be and its implications, then it boils to your word against mine.
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Edited by - njucks on 23 May 2006 18:30:57 |
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kondorong
Gambia
4380 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 18:37:01
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| I did not know i offended others nor was it intended. However, my apologies to any one who may have been offended. I did not have a maid so that is not relevant to me. |
“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always.” |
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serenata
Germany
1400 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 20:42:56
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quote:
Originally posted by njucks
can you tell a german by just looking at him? no body is dicriminating against any one. what you have heard are just views of individual people perhaps expressing their own prejudices.
I as a German very often recognize other Germans without having talked to them. 
Prejudices always come as individual views; that's what makes them dangerous. And, to be frank: I heard people in Gambia - Mandinka, Wolof - talk bad about the Jolas. The reason was mostly that some Jolas are animists ("Hey, these people are praying to stones and trees - I mean...!!") and that some of them drink alcohol.
But as long as it is limited to tapping one's forehead, it's okay, I think. We all have our prejudices. What would I personally do without the USA! Without the Albanians!  |
Edited by - serenata on 23 May 2006 20:45:42 |
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LEMON TIME
Afghanistan
1295 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 20:50:12
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| SERETATA where you born in the GAMBIA if not you seem to know alot about gambia |
There is no god but Allah |
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serenata
Germany
1400 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 20:58:36
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Lemon Time:
Yeah... 'I'm a spy in the house of love' (Jim Morrison)
But honestly, I am German. Born and raised in Germany. Though, I am a European mixture: My forefathers (and -mothers) came from the North (Holland), the West (France), the South (Austria, Hungary) and the East (Poland) some 300, 100, 80 years ago. Maybe this made it easier for me to get acquainted with a culture like my husband's, who is a Gambian. |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 21:10:36
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serenata i agree with you totally. human nature is elementary here and not important (its universal), what he posted was simply not true. secondly those comments depends on the context it is said, you hear it between mandinkas themselves, with fulas and jola. badibunkas and kiangkas, between fula and Kabunkas etc. you always hear it said amicably. just like i might take it wrongly if i hear the English blaming everything on the French (bloody french).
last week Jambo said something that was not true. now that a peer-review system has emerged and got him to apologise and withdraw his statements. the same must apply to everyone in the Bantaba.
what we cannot control is individual behaviour of people but there is no widespread discrimination by one group against the other in The Gambia. |
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serenata
Germany
1400 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 21:18:40
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Thank you, Njucks. We should try not to be more Catholic than the Pope, as we say in Germany. It is just a matter of the extent.
Oh, I almost forgot: There is also a Jewish branch in my lineage tree. Some time ago, but it is there, and I like it. Can I hear some prejudices, please? |
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Newfy
Western Samoa
462 Posts |
Posted - 23 May 2006 : 22:36:24
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I found this on the web this morning about the Spanish envoy meeting
with Gambian authorities.
What will be the outcome of this meeting?
Will the address the root problems which lead to migration?
What will be the Spanish "offensive"?
Spanish special envoy meets Gambian authorities
Written by Chief Ebrima B Manneh
Tuesday, 23 May 2006
Miguel Angel Fernangez Mazalambroz, a spanish special envoy who is expected to meet government officials of seven West African countries meets Gambian authorities today to discuss issues pertaining to Gambian migrants struggling to reach Europe through Spain.
Disclosing this to the Daily Observer yesterday, Justo Martin, Spanish Honorary Vice Consul in The Gambia said the envoy will be meeting officials of the departments of state for Foreign Affairs and the Interior.
Meanwhile, Spain has announced a three-year diplomatic offensive in West Africa as an attempt to stem the flow of African migrants into Europe. It is believed that thousands of migrants each year make the harzadous sea crossing to Canary Islands or to the Spanish mainland.
According to the Spanish government, they will base a diplomatic team in Senegal to try to persuade six nations to accept deported migrants. This year alone 7,000 people have reached the Canary Islands - five times more than in the first five months of last year.
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gambiabev
United Kingdom
3091 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 08:28:10
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Serenata you talk alot of sense.....
I just want to make clear that what I said about Jolas was not my own opinion but things I had heard other Gambians say.
I think you can tell who is Jola, because generally they do have very beautiful smooth dark skin....much blacker than Mandinkas.
When I first went to Gambia I couldnt distinguish one group from another. My guide assures me he can tell by skin colour, height, face shape..then if in doubt by which village and surnames......
There is nothing wrong with being able to do this......what is wrong is if you are then PREJUDICE against one group or another.
My guide isnot prejudice. He likes people and treats them as he finds them. If they are a good muslim he likes them no matter what group they are from.....being Gambian comes first.
I am sure this is true of the majority of Gambians.
Sadly the first time most Gambians will meet serious racial prejudice is when they travel to the West. |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 10:00:00
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quote:
Originally posted by gambiabev
I think you can tell who is Jola, because generally they do have very beautiful smooth dark skin....much blacker than Mandinkas.
gambiabev. you nor your guide can tell a Jola by their skin colour. that is not true. infact it is the opposite that is likely to be true. secondly you do not know gambia well enough to be making such statements.
do u know a village in the gambia that is predominantly one group. most people come from families where there is a lot of intermarriage so i dont see how you can say mandinkas have lighter skin and jolas dont.
infact you might not know this but in the part of the gambia near the coast the (south western part) you cannot distinguish a mandinka from a Jola. unless you sit down and enquire about the family history. next time you go to Pirang/Faraba tell your guide to ask for a Bajang family and see if they have dark skin and that they are Jola or Mandinka. you will get it wrong. most mandinkas use the term Jola openly, you might not understand this and i can't explain it.
the President of The Gambia is a Jola can you tell this by looking at his skin? dont be silly. he speaks better mandinka than most mandinkas and could easily have come from Badibu with the same skin colour and be taken as a mandinka, how would you explain that. he would also be a Serer. can u tell.
what you are doing is what you have written on countless occasions rejecting and that is generalising. please stop as this only shows ignorance of gambian culture.
its like me making a stupid comment that any one with a shaven head is a Skinhead racist. its generalising and stupid. |
Edited by - njucks on 24 May 2006 10:02:26 |
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kisley
United Kingdom
214 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 10:30:31
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Njuks I hear what you are saying, but by saying someone from a certain tribe MAY have darker skin, or is taller - how can that be rejecting.
Its like saying Welch people usually have dark hair, very pale skin , or that scandanavian people are ususally blonde. Im always been told that I have typical "celtic" colouring, dark hair, very pale, green eyes - Its not being derogative.
Honestly I dont understand - Ive only been to Gambia once and no nothing about the country. So if someone can tell me, or guide me to an appropriate website I would appreciate it.
The question I asked earlier in response to "why are Jolas discriminated against",(which was asked out of knowledge as I know nothing about the tribes)has opened a whole can of worms. (so now I am intrigued). Your statement "its like me making a stupid comment that any one with a shaven head is a Skinhead racist. its generalising and stupid." - yes thats right because my husband is a skinhead, but not a racist.(and that is a derogatory statement)
But by saying someone has dark hair, or dark skin, or tall is not being derogative - not in my eyes, because to me all the ATTRIBUTES described by Gambiabev are beautiful. Or people am I missing the point here. |
Edited by - kisley on 24 May 2006 10:38:04 |
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kisley
United Kingdom
214 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 11:00:09
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| Had a cuppa tea, had a bit think - Is it because you thinks its wrong to start categorising people,(no matter how benign) because it can ultimatly lead to prejudice. |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 11:01:39
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she is not rejecting or expressing prejudice. you did not know so you asked. she was told something by a friend and she presented it in the bantaba.she was corrected but she insists on maintaining it.
the point is those of us who are gambian and know try to help. it was pointed to her that this is not true, but she when further by generalising and saying ''shes thinking she can tell.......
if i didnt know about skinheads i would ask but i wouldnt generalise then i would offend people like your husband, especially if i this has been pointed out before.generalision is wrong and she knows it.
your question was answered before through many discussions. but i will try again. NO ONE IS DISCRIMINATING AGAINST ANYONE. if this was the case gambia would be like other african countries and at war!!!
the thing is just an economic reality. before a lot of people immigrated to the gambina from Casamance (southern senegal) and they were not educated, don't speak english and unskilled. naturally the easily job would be to be employed as a maid in the economic system. because the majority of people from that part of Casamance are Jola people tend to think '' all maids are Jola''. which is stupid. also the jobtitle is self is not respected. some see this as discrimination. but its like unskilled immigrants coming to Europe. they join the system from the bottom. thats all.
you can visit http://www.gambia.co.uk/docs/about_the_gambia/gambian_life/language_culture.aspx
its a good website and has lots of info. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE GAMBIA/GAMBIANS, ANYTHING ASK AND WE WILL TELL YOU. JUST ASK.
i hope this helps. |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 24 May 2006 : 11:06:24
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quote:
Originally posted by kisley
Had a cuppa tea, had a bit think - Is it because you thinks its wrong to start categorising people,(no matter how benign) because it can ultimatly lead to prejudice.
PRECISELY |
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