People have been kind enough to ask several questions, but I have not addressed them. I will do so now:
Q: What are differences in the cultures of the Krio and Mende?
A: First off, there are about 16 tribes in Sierra Leone, not just these tow.
Krio is the name given to the group of returned slaves from England. So they are not really ethnically the same. Their ancestors came from many countries all over West Africa and they were just artificially put together. The Krio speak the Krio language, which is similar to broken English, but different since it has other West African languages integrated into it. The Krio mostly all live in Freetown, the capital. Their staple food is called fou-fou, which is kind of a thick porridge made from ground cassava.
The Mende are one of the biggest tribes. They dominate the Eastern and Southern regions. They speak the Mende language. You can here people speaking Mende if you watch the movie Amistad. I remember the lawyer counting in Mende (e-ta, fe-le, sou-wa…). The Mende really love 2 things: stangers (foreigners, white people, pumuy) and rice. Rice is the staple food served with a sauce, often made from cassava leaf, potato leaf, or peanunt, and fish. Most Mende are farmers and produce most of the food for Sierra Leone.
Q: What do they think of America and Americans?
A: This is difficult to say, for several reasons. One is that of course there are many individuals with many different ideas. Also, many people don’t really know geography and don’t really know the difference between a British or any other European, American, or Lebanese person. All of them are classified at ‘Pumuy’ or white people. I can say that all people do think that every white person is rich. To some extent I can understand this, since you must at least of the money for a plan ticket to arrive here and that is the cash equivalent of about 2 years salary. However, they think we have A LOT of money, like millions of dollars. Some people have gotten mad at me for refusing to give them $100. Most people have misperceptions about America since they do not see the real life from movies and music videos. Everyone is surprised to hear that there are beggars or any poverty in America. I am not sure how most white people have treated the locals here in the past, but it has been commented to me several times how unusual it is for me to be hanging out and living amongst all the black people treating them like friends and equals. Some people have commented on not liking the Iraq war, but not many. Most people are happy that America sends aid and like them for that. I point out how little we give compared to our GDP, but this isn’t no important. Here money talks and they see that America gives money, so we are friends.
Q: Who do they want to win the next Presidential election?
A: Obama, but most people do not believe that a black man will be allowed to win the presidency. Bush is not terribly unpopular. Most people view him as a strong leader who takes action and does what he says he will. Most people are unaware of who the republican nominee will be. Of course Bill Clinton is well loved. People don’t really know much about Hillary besides that he is Bill’s wife.
Q: What sports do they like?
A: SOCCER! Mostly the Eurpeon leagues. EVERYONE loves it. There was just the Africa Cup of Nations and that was widely viewed. There are places where you can watch the games on satellite TV for the equivalent of 30 cents. I would go there sometimes when I was still trying to like soccer. I gave up J Most of my friends are Liverpool fans so I guess I support them.
Q: What is life like there for women?
A: This is difficult to answer since personal circumstances vary. I would say there is considerably less sexism than in Botswana. I would say that there are large differences in the lives of men and women, but that some of these are claimed to be chosen. Men and women in society enjoy having separate and different roles. Women mostly do stay at home and take care of the house and children, while men are expected to go work. Many women do work though, on top of their household chores, to have additional income. Many have small markets where they sell food or clothing.
One thing to note is that there is a ritual here where girls become women. Some human rights groups call it female genital mutilation. This is very controversial. Many women believe it to be part of their culture and want to take part. Some are allowed to refuse with their families permission, some are not. Some people feel that the age when this is being performed is getting younger and younger and that they are not old enough to make a choice for themselves.
Another issue concerning women is prostitution. There are many, many, MANY sex workers. Some are extremely young. They feel it is their only way to make income and some or even forced to by their parents. Others are orphans from the war.
Oh, there are also issues regarding infidelity. As with many cultures it is expected that women remain faithful, but men are not held to the same standard.
There was a program last year where the government paid the school fees only for the women students since they had such low rates of attendance. This may have caused more problems regarding sex, since the male students were very jealous. The program is unlikely to continue. I also read that the male literacy rate is 49% while the female’s is 29%, so there a gap there.
Q: What are some types of Political groups/structures you have seen? Does Kenema have a leader? Are they based on Families etc...?
A: Well, there are both traditional groups as well as government groups and they have overlapping responsibilities. Most people do prefer to resolve things between families and then go to the chief before going to the police.
So the country is divided into districts, I live in Kenema District. Kenema District is divided into 16 chiefdoms, all headed by a paramount chief. These chiefdoms are further divided and rules by sub-chiefs.
On the government side there are 2 main political parties, the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and the African People’s Congress (APC). There was just a presidential election before I came where the APC narrowly won. There is still tension about the elections. Many votes were claimed to be invalid and some people are still upset about thise. There was just an incident in the neighboring town of Bo the other day where the police were involved in some disturbance that all started from the vandalization of an APC leader’s picture.
People’s party affiliation often is determined by their geography, and this also is related to which tribe you are in. In the Eastern and Southern part of the country, the Mende areas, there are mostly SLPP supporters.
There has been no local government here in over 30 years. The government has been very centralized in Freetown. Many feel this was one of the major causes of the war since people did not feel at all represented by the government and they were not receiving enough government services if outside of Freetown. There will be local elections this year.
Q: Did you see the M2 show?
A: No, it got postponed, but she will be here this weekend! I have been counting down for a few weeks. She is performing with 7 other female Sierra Leonean rappers at the town field the 15-17th. I will write about it afterwards and try to include a picture. My favorite songs or hers are Sweet Africa and The Lady’s Doctor.
