Dear all,
A few days ago I came back to Europe after the first 6 weeks of field research in the Central African Republic. As I am trying to make sense of what I saw, the stories I heard, trying to fit it into some academic theoretical frame .. I find my mind filled mostly with the children I met, the stories they told me, the desperate, seemingly hopeless situations they find themselves in. I want to write something smart and academic but find myself reflecting on a more sensitive level as well, in particular musing over the lack of love in these children’s lives. How can a country ever move forward, if its children are the subject of physical and psychological abuse on a daily basis, adults treating them like they are no more than objects or slaves?
There is a very interesting academic analysis to be distilled here that I think, or hope, will have an impact on the lives of these children, through hopefully influencing government and NGO work on education. However, for now there are two things mostly on my mind; one is, I have to go back, collect more data, finding the pieces of the puzzle that are still missing. So some of my time for the next two months will be spent on finding financial means to go back. Secondly, on the sensitive side of understanding, I find that Benjamin Clementine’s reprisal of Jimmy Hendrix’ “Voodoo Child” expresses the situation of CAR children better than I ever could; the chaos, fear, insecurity, loneliness…
Don’t wanna think about two times ten plus seven
Oh, this is getting too damn scary
Lord, hope I’m not a voodoo child […]
Standing by in the middle of the road
watching passers by as we go by
and still I’m on front, no I’m on front
as the cops, they come by
So I’m a voodoo child, I’m a voodoo child
Lord knows I’m a voodoo child […]
I’m sorry for taking your sweet time
I’ll give it back to you one of these days
if you don’t meet me now, meet me
when I say goodbye to you
don’t meet me the next world war
I hope you meet me the next one after that
You know, I’m a voodoo chid, I’m a voodoo child
And lord knows I’m a voodoo child
