About racism, prejudice, love, hate, and culture.

Hello dear ones,

Last week has given me many new - and also disturbing - impressions into the culture and minds of many people here. I would like to share these with you.

Since being here in Uganda, I have had to turn off, understand, and then digest many things.

Love and Pride
Through conversations in the staff room, I have noticed, based on some reactions and questions, that my ideas of family and partnership living completely collide with the Ugandan ones. I have wondered why many women here live alone with their children. When I ask, 'Where is the father?' ...Then many point into the distance or wave it off. Men and women do not live together. There is no or hardly any partnership relationship here. This is due to the division of roles and also the lack of job opportunities, which is why men usually take jobs several kilometers away from home. Women are also said to be abundant here and have to fight for men, who quickly drop them as well. For a man, the greatest thing is to conceive twins or triplets. They are then taken care of by the women. One of the teachers has 6 women simultaneously and a total of 14 children.

Religion and Superstition
Religion is deeply rooted in everyday life. Even though many religions coexist here, everyone strongly practices their own beliefs, which is fine for everyone. I hear the chants of prayer from the school resonating across the country several times a day. The classes each have their own religious motto. For example, when a teacher enters class P4 (Primary - 4th grade), the students sing in chorus, 'our School is New Hope Primary School, our class is P4, our class teacher is teacher robert and our motto is: the fear of god is the beginning of knowledge'.

In a class lesson on HIV and AIDS prevention, a student said that it is not so bad to get HIV if you believe in God - because he can heal it. The class teacher intervened and said, yes, God can heal everything - but if you challenge God, it won't work, only if you can't do anything about it.

One of many shocking moments.

It is a step-by-step process here, and often I encounter resistance as soon as my statements do not align with their beliefs.

On Sunday, I accompanied a school class to the church located 40 minutes away. They are picked up and brought home by a church minibus every Sunday. For me, it is definite - once and never again.

It was incredibly loud and confusing. This religious group has the habit of turning the speakers up very loud and shouting into the microphone - so that you can feel the vibrations throughout your body - 'Thank God' I came home without tinnitus.

In the 'Lections,' all visitors to the church are divided into age groups. Church members and pastors then speak with them about religious topics or read from the Bible. I had the pleasure of being with the youngest ones (ages 3-6). They were told the story of David and Goliath and were repeatedly reminded that if they did not help their mothers and were naughty children, they would go to 'HELL AND BURN, BURN, BURN.' I then thought that all children from my school days, including me, will go to hell ;).

In total, this church service with the arrival and return trip lasted 7 (!!) hours.

Now, onto the topic that occupied me the most:

I have already been confronted with many things in my life, but never with prejudice towards me because I am white. The 'Muzungu' article could already shed some light on how rare it is for people here to see white people. Apart from that, it is almost unbelievable what they think about me, a white woman. I was just digging in the field when two young men approached me and asked me what I was doing here. They would think that I am here on vacation. When I tried to explain to them why I am here, one of them took the hoe out of my hand and asked me how much money I could give him if he finished it for me.

A student from the 3rd grade (!) asked me at the end of the class, 'Meike, how can we get good money?'

When people see white, they see wealth, they mostly think that white people are all Americans.

They are surprised that I can peel vegetables, that I know how to wash clothes by hand, how to dig a field, 'YOU know how to wash????' Yes, they think we have machines for EVERYTHING. For the people here, it is shocking to learn that beyond Africa, there are white people who are poor.

It is often very uncomfortable for me.

The mothers with whom I work in the baby home already know me well. We live together like a family, and Mama Josephine has declared herself my surrogate mother. They cook every day, and I always get to eat with them (it is incredibly delicious!!). I have learned some Ugandan dishes and will cook them in Germany sometime. I also really enjoy working at the school, as well as the physical work in the field - it is good for me as a balance.

Sending all of you warm greetings, and see you soon,

Meike