Kærlighed til folket means "Love to the people" and is a song by a Danish reggae band that I saw performing in Christiania at a festival a couple days ago.
I have learned SO so much about immigration, migration, security politics, DENMARK, Europe... but most importantly about myself - making my boundaries, valuing my contributions and abilities, listening to my intuition. So much good stuff. I am a bit deliriously tired today... but wanted to post something. We had a final wrap up of the CPH program - everyone presented their articles and we did a little wrap up exercise. So insane that it is coming to a close! We were asked to share a little bit about what we are bringing away from the program.
I have learned to listen closely to myself. Being around so many of the Danish fellows who are older than me, 24-28, made me realize and embrace how young and inexperienced I am in many ways. I am still charting the boundaries of who I am. That is neither a good or bad thing - it just is. But accepting it is vital. Sorry this is so philosophical... it is what is on my mind. This is the most adult environment I have ever been in. We were very much peers with the leaders of the program and the speakers etc. I liked it SO much... and helped me articulate why college can be frustrating for me sometimes. Not very adult at all. I am tired of the Whitman "we're happy, well-meaning people who want to make a difference...." attitude that doesn't go along with action in most cases.
I wrote my final article with my friend Thomas, a Danish fellow, on asylum policy in Denmark and Europe generally. I learned SO so much about the nuts and bolts of these systems but what was most interesting of course was getting Thomas' perspective. Coming from Denmark the idea that the strong help the weak is almost... unexamined. It is what you do. It is what a welfare state is all about. At first he was confused when I asked him to justify it for me - he didn't know what I was asking. The experience showed both of us where a lot of our assumptions lie abotu the role of government, the law, and civil society. Asylum policy EU/European (there are complicated and boring overlaps and discrepancies there...) is fraught with human rights issues. Asylum seekers are shuttled around the continent or left in Greece's - officially - broken system to rot. I would love to tell you all about it in person but I am afraid my head is exploding off of it right now. So I will just say - Thomas and I had SOOOO MUCH FUN working together. We camped out in his apartment, bought provisions for the several days and just kept it upbeat and fun throughout. He has the strangest, most Danish sense of humor. By the way - I LOVE Danish humor. It is kind of dark in the British sense but a little less depressing, weird in different ways. The Danes just keep it casual, they're great people. Thomas and I had taco day one day, pineapple snacks.... so much coffee and tea... his girl friend brought us snacks while we were working. The friendships are to me clearly the coolest aspect of this program. I have learned mountains from these people.
A couple days ago I went out to dinner with my mom's friend from college, Ron Seversen! We really hit it off and had so much to talk about. It was neat to hear his perspectives on how Denmark has changed, why he thinks Denmark is having so many problems with ethnic tension and race relations, what is happening with the right wing in Denmark. So many good conversations. Afterwards I wandered around Norrebro with two Bosnian friends form the program. It was such a funny little evening - these two lovely Bosnian people are so different from anyone I know, from any lives I have known about. They lived through war in the Balkans and have very different, distinct memories and interpretations of that time. Marija says that she finds a lot of similarities between the Bosnian case and Israel-Palestine. Though of course it is much less violent. Anyway, Norrebro, where we were wandering, is a neighborhood with a lot of immigrants and young people. The favorite neighborhood of most of the Danes on the program because there is so much happening there, so much life.
SOOOO tomorrow I leave for Berlin! We have a conference there through Sunday and then I will be there for a few more days until heading on to Budapest, Geneva (visiting old host fam!), Nantes to farm, and Paris. I am STOKED for Berlin. Seriously stoked. It sounds like one of the most engaging, historic, artistic, active cities in the world.
I will miss practicing my Danish! I have become halfway decent and I really enjoy the game of it. Makes me excited to take German next year... though I think I will be secretly - or not so secretly - wishing it were Danish all the while :)
Love to the people, Kærlighed til folket!
~Alice
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Prison
Today we did a site visit to one of Denmark's open prisions. It was unbelievable. The whole philosophy surrounding imprisonment is completely opposed to the US ideology of punitive sentencing... The prisoners here could literally walk away from the prison if they chose to. They would just be caught and put in a closed prison - which is still much more humane than American prisons. One of the inmates (prison guests would be a direct translation of the Danish) gave us a tour along with a guide. When he walked into the room it was clear that he brought his identity and humanity with him. Prisoners here cook for themselves (yes, the get to use butcher knives), clean, work, and generally make their own lives go on. The Danes believe in "normalization" - keeping life in the prison as close to life outside as possible so that when inmates go back into society they are able to function successfully. the idea is to restrict a prisoner's liberty but only to the extent absolutely necessary. There are no minimum sentencing laws. No private prisons.
It made me think - why do we lock people up? to restrict their liberty? To punish? To prevent them from offending again? So what are the most effective ways of doing this? Are we doing it for the good of society, for the satifaction of the victim, for the betterment of the victim?
In the afternoon we had lectures abotu the history of prisons in Europe briefly and Denmark more extensively as well as on torture - the politics and rhetoric of torture, post 9/11 climate for torture, etc.
Tomorrow we are visiting a refugee camp for asylum seekers! It should be a fascinating day as well. It is rare that outsiders are allowed into the camp.
Outside of the official HiA events I have been having a blast with all the fellows. Yesterday I wandered aroudn Christiania (look it up if you don't know about it... it is a free area established by hippies 30 years ago) and then met up with a Danish friend and he showed me a neighborhood I hadn't been to - Norrebro. Today a bunch of us sat by the canal and talked for ages - about politics, yes, but other things as well! We struggle to get off the human rights/international relations/Danish politics vein of conversation at times... :)
Ok. I am going to go make dinner for my host family. They are wonderful people - I feel very fortunate to live with them!
Love.
It made me think - why do we lock people up? to restrict their liberty? To punish? To prevent them from offending again? So what are the most effective ways of doing this? Are we doing it for the good of society, for the satifaction of the victim, for the betterment of the victim?
In the afternoon we had lectures abotu the history of prisons in Europe briefly and Denmark more extensively as well as on torture - the politics and rhetoric of torture, post 9/11 climate for torture, etc.
Tomorrow we are visiting a refugee camp for asylum seekers! It should be a fascinating day as well. It is rare that outsiders are allowed into the camp.
Outside of the official HiA events I have been having a blast with all the fellows. Yesterday I wandered aroudn Christiania (look it up if you don't know about it... it is a free area established by hippies 30 years ago) and then met up with a Danish friend and he showed me a neighborhood I hadn't been to - Norrebro. Today a bunch of us sat by the canal and talked for ages - about politics, yes, but other things as well! We struggle to get off the human rights/international relations/Danish politics vein of conversation at times... :)
Ok. I am going to go make dinner for my host family. They are wonderful people - I feel very fortunate to live with them!
Love.
Monday, June 13, 2011
busybusy!
hey friends!
sorry not to blog much, we are BUSY here, and with great things. This weekend we finally had some free time but i was constantly with people - seeing Malmo, Sweden with a bunch of the others, wandering around Copenhagen with some of the Danes. I have gotten very close very quickly to quite a few of the people on the program. One of them is actually from Seattle and is one of my closest friends! He reminds me SO much of my friend Zach from Whitman, it is uncanny. And a comfort :) Love you, Zach! The Danes are determined to show us a good time and shelter us from anything less than extraordinary. On Friday there was a Brazilian Carnival in one of the big public parks that they took us to - after a long day of program events. I also ended up at a Pakistani whirling dervish drum circle and the anthropology end of year party at Copenhagen university because one of my Danish friends goes there. We saw a play called "The White Man" last monday about immigrants dealing with Danish society - it tried to portray the range of approaches to integration - or assimilation as the case may be - amongst immigrants. There were real life moments tossed in artfully. It was a powerful experience for the Danes to see. As one of my Danish friends put it - the play was aimed at well meaning liberals in Denmark who don't think they have any racist tendencies because they are part of this lovely welfare state based on equality of opportunity... It isn't a tirade against extreme racism - that wouldn't be remotely controversial. My friend who took me to the anthropology year-end party said that it was the perfect example of his experience of the well-meaning white man in Denmark. Very kind and fun, quite 'open' to new experiences - but never really aware of the way a lot of Danish people are living. And not quite wanting to be aware.
Lots of interesting speakers - quite a few on human rights law and the differences between Danish and American courts. The Queen has an IMMENSE amoutn of power in actuality - it is a bit odd really. And seems to fly in the face of what Denmark is proud of - the equality it offers to all its people. Many young people would abolish the monarchy if they had the choice. But it's not relaly important enough to completely fight for.
Learnign abotu immigration in the Dnaish context has totally thrown me for a loop. I can't quite really articulate how different things are here from the American discourse but WOW if I thought I knew "about immigration" I was sorely mistaken. A good reminder that we are composed of the contexts and experiences we have the chance to take in. Minorities are grouped together here in a different way from the states. It is Islam and not Hispanics that are stigmatized... but it's not like you can just insert the would 'Muslim' in any mention of 'Hispanic' in the American context. Denmark is happy to welcome in asylum seekers who are persecuted for political or social reasons - Denmark has welcomed quite a few LGBT people who are unable to return to Iran, for example. But then the welfare state component throws a bunch of twists into the equation. Many people are put off when asked to pay into a system that will support new comers who havent been paying into the system. Many more Danes however would argue that it is vital to the social cohesion of Denmark (something we hear abotu constantly) that all people in the country - regardless of citizenship status - receive the same social benefits. Otherwise they will never feel the necessary connection to the country and it would be a serious human rights violation.
Language. Denmark simply doesn't have the language to talk about racial, ethnic, and religious debates/diversions. Literally they lack words in many cases. Ideas about structural racism, ethnic identity, coexisting identities, and more are brand new here. A friend of mine on the program has a Danish mother and a father who is half Iraqi and half Iranian. She considers herself Danish and has talked abotu how it is really impossible to be both in this country. Another friend has a Danish father and Chilean mother - her mother was a refugee from Pinochet;s regime. She feels Danish but always seperate and less Danish. These women are both highly educated and engaged in political conversations abotu Denmark.
okay I am EXHAUSTED. I have more to say but i gotta go. This program is nothing if not FAST paced! I will be back though, I enjoy reflecting on here.
Love,
Alice
sorry not to blog much, we are BUSY here, and with great things. This weekend we finally had some free time but i was constantly with people - seeing Malmo, Sweden with a bunch of the others, wandering around Copenhagen with some of the Danes. I have gotten very close very quickly to quite a few of the people on the program. One of them is actually from Seattle and is one of my closest friends! He reminds me SO much of my friend Zach from Whitman, it is uncanny. And a comfort :) Love you, Zach! The Danes are determined to show us a good time and shelter us from anything less than extraordinary. On Friday there was a Brazilian Carnival in one of the big public parks that they took us to - after a long day of program events. I also ended up at a Pakistani whirling dervish drum circle and the anthropology end of year party at Copenhagen university because one of my Danish friends goes there. We saw a play called "The White Man" last monday about immigrants dealing with Danish society - it tried to portray the range of approaches to integration - or assimilation as the case may be - amongst immigrants. There were real life moments tossed in artfully. It was a powerful experience for the Danes to see. As one of my Danish friends put it - the play was aimed at well meaning liberals in Denmark who don't think they have any racist tendencies because they are part of this lovely welfare state based on equality of opportunity... It isn't a tirade against extreme racism - that wouldn't be remotely controversial. My friend who took me to the anthropology year-end party said that it was the perfect example of his experience of the well-meaning white man in Denmark. Very kind and fun, quite 'open' to new experiences - but never really aware of the way a lot of Danish people are living. And not quite wanting to be aware.
Lots of interesting speakers - quite a few on human rights law and the differences between Danish and American courts. The Queen has an IMMENSE amoutn of power in actuality - it is a bit odd really. And seems to fly in the face of what Denmark is proud of - the equality it offers to all its people. Many young people would abolish the monarchy if they had the choice. But it's not relaly important enough to completely fight for.
Learnign abotu immigration in the Dnaish context has totally thrown me for a loop. I can't quite really articulate how different things are here from the American discourse but WOW if I thought I knew "about immigration" I was sorely mistaken. A good reminder that we are composed of the contexts and experiences we have the chance to take in. Minorities are grouped together here in a different way from the states. It is Islam and not Hispanics that are stigmatized... but it's not like you can just insert the would 'Muslim' in any mention of 'Hispanic' in the American context. Denmark is happy to welcome in asylum seekers who are persecuted for political or social reasons - Denmark has welcomed quite a few LGBT people who are unable to return to Iran, for example. But then the welfare state component throws a bunch of twists into the equation. Many people are put off when asked to pay into a system that will support new comers who havent been paying into the system. Many more Danes however would argue that it is vital to the social cohesion of Denmark (something we hear abotu constantly) that all people in the country - regardless of citizenship status - receive the same social benefits. Otherwise they will never feel the necessary connection to the country and it would be a serious human rights violation.
Language. Denmark simply doesn't have the language to talk about racial, ethnic, and religious debates/diversions. Literally they lack words in many cases. Ideas about structural racism, ethnic identity, coexisting identities, and more are brand new here. A friend of mine on the program has a Danish mother and a father who is half Iraqi and half Iranian. She considers herself Danish and has talked abotu how it is really impossible to be both in this country. Another friend has a Danish father and Chilean mother - her mother was a refugee from Pinochet;s regime. She feels Danish but always seperate and less Danish. These women are both highly educated and engaged in political conversations abotu Denmark.
okay I am EXHAUSTED. I have more to say but i gotta go. This program is nothing if not FAST paced! I will be back though, I enjoy reflecting on here.
Love,
Alice
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Humanity IN ACTION
This program is inspiration. It has only been four days _ maybe even less since the program started and I feel completely immersed.
getting to know the European students is fascinating and so much more intellectually engaging that I could have imagined. Immigration rhetoric is totally shifted here when compared to the US Mexico border immigration conversation. the discourse here is all about integration versus assimilation... ways to do each, merits of various formats and what they imply. Denmark is new to immigrants compared to the US. It was only the late sixties and really in earnest the 1970s when immigrants begun to arrive in Denmark. The issue of Danish identity and values is a slippery one as well. When you look at the poles it would seem that Danes are middling to slightly adverse to immigrants... but then you take into account that Denmark and France are the most polarized populations on the issues of immigration and integration and suddenly the debate means a lot more for divisions within Danish society.
More on that soon! Really the most powerful stuff happening in the past couple of days has been getting to know these amazing individuals that were also selected for HiA. Everyone is passionate and ready to dive into this five weeks with openness, energy, and a critical mind. And EVERYONE without exception is here because they have a specific calling within Human rights and politics. It is truly amazing. Our conversations range from in depth discussions about our own identities and defining moments that have called us to action to the difference between feminism in the states in Europe/Denmark, to parliamentary politics, to the potential for human rights discourse to be seen as a civil religion within Europe particularly, to the very different definitions of human rights as perceived across the Atlantic. Constant engagement! It is a little exhausting. We spent the last several days all in a little cabin in the Danish countryside getting to know each other, setting the framework for the coming weeks, and hearing several speakers as well including the most important news personality in Denmark speak on Danish politics and media and the post 9/11 paradigm shift in Europe.
Now I am with my host family back in CPH! I am living just outside of the city about 15 minutes from the heart of it. i am actually living with a British couple who has been in Denmark for the past 16 years. Dave works high up in the European Environmental Agency and Vivian is the communications director for the World Health Organization. Which means in the wake of the ecoli outbreak in Europe she has been BUSY. She got a call from Aljazeera while we were having afternoon tea and cake. *So British hahaha* Then a bit later she had a little chat with CNN. So topsy turvy haha!
Well. I am tired and going to help with dinner now. I love you all, hope you are well. more to come
getting to know the European students is fascinating and so much more intellectually engaging that I could have imagined. Immigration rhetoric is totally shifted here when compared to the US Mexico border immigration conversation. the discourse here is all about integration versus assimilation... ways to do each, merits of various formats and what they imply. Denmark is new to immigrants compared to the US. It was only the late sixties and really in earnest the 1970s when immigrants begun to arrive in Denmark. The issue of Danish identity and values is a slippery one as well. When you look at the poles it would seem that Danes are middling to slightly adverse to immigrants... but then you take into account that Denmark and France are the most polarized populations on the issues of immigration and integration and suddenly the debate means a lot more for divisions within Danish society.
More on that soon! Really the most powerful stuff happening in the past couple of days has been getting to know these amazing individuals that were also selected for HiA. Everyone is passionate and ready to dive into this five weeks with openness, energy, and a critical mind. And EVERYONE without exception is here because they have a specific calling within Human rights and politics. It is truly amazing. Our conversations range from in depth discussions about our own identities and defining moments that have called us to action to the difference between feminism in the states in Europe/Denmark, to parliamentary politics, to the potential for human rights discourse to be seen as a civil religion within Europe particularly, to the very different definitions of human rights as perceived across the Atlantic. Constant engagement! It is a little exhausting. We spent the last several days all in a little cabin in the Danish countryside getting to know each other, setting the framework for the coming weeks, and hearing several speakers as well including the most important news personality in Denmark speak on Danish politics and media and the post 9/11 paradigm shift in Europe.
Now I am with my host family back in CPH! I am living just outside of the city about 15 minutes from the heart of it. i am actually living with a British couple who has been in Denmark for the past 16 years. Dave works high up in the European Environmental Agency and Vivian is the communications director for the World Health Organization. Which means in the wake of the ecoli outbreak in Europe she has been BUSY. She got a call from Aljazeera while we were having afternoon tea and cake. *So British hahaha* Then a bit later she had a little chat with CNN. So topsy turvy haha!
Well. I am tired and going to help with dinner now. I love you all, hope you are well. more to come
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