Independence. High and Low Dreams.

searching for new ways to relate with each other on Jamhuri Day - Kenyan Independence Day.

In October 2023, the Deep Democracy Institute* (East Africa) hosted a large international group of around 200 people for training leadership- and facilitation skills in Nairobi Kenya (and online). Each day was a combination of different formats e.g. inner work, relationship/coaching setting, small and large group facilitation. The topic chosen for the first large group process was African representation in Western Media. 

This topic resonated deeply with the Worldwork Journalism (WWJ) idea of facilitating ‘pluri-sided’ group dialogue (rather than one-sided communication) which is then mirrored in the writing that emerges afterwards - as a way to work with global tension and diversity around topics.

So, we decided to do a special WWJ edition on Global North/Global South/Media on the 12th of December.  The planned session landed on Jamhuri Day - Kenyan Independence Day. We only had time to give three days’ notice and were excited and grateful for all that signed up. Special thanks to our Kenyan participants for spending some of your festive Day with the rest of us. By sharing this dialogue here, we want and hope to invite more people to join this conversation, by reading and/or commenting on it.

The chosen topic was finding a new way to relate with each other as people from different ethnicities and backgrounds. 

Let’s listen to some of the voices ….

Listening to everyone talking, I feel a high dream stirring; of a world where individuals, communities and nations are independent and relate from that place. Where individuals and groups can express themselves freely. 

In this new way of relating, in a world where everyone is independent, no one gets to be more right or more independent than anyone else. This is what we are doing now… finding a way to relate across our global inequities, our historical, cultural and psychological borders…speaking our personal stories, of our struggles with independence of self-expression, acknowledging our need to free ourselves from the coloniser/racist/ sexist/oppressor within and/or without, freeing our nations from the tyranny of oppressors (like the war in Ukraine). Taking risks to speak! Learning how to listen deeply. 

In this vision, and on this page- the media is a vehicle for freedom of expression, independence of thought, space for diverse voices, facilitating relatedness………….acknowledging all that is carried within the crevices of our hearts and minds, our low and high dreams, bringing forth all that needs to be heard… and somehow helping us to find our way to connection.

Penny

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Finding new ways of relating to each other helps us overcome the colonisers (our minds) that through the media keep reminding us that we are still inferior and unimportant. It makes one remain in a cage, kind of a ghost cage! We cannot pinpoint what was done to us but we remain in agony, pain, distress and distrust. It is time to appreciate what happened back then but find a new way of making the world a better place by rooting for ways of rewriting our history and possible future. 

Mildred Akinyi from Nairobi/ Kenya

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Being in a cage is the role that spoke to me with the most energy. As a young African woman, I have been brought up and surrounded by a cage. Society and family gave me a false sense of freedom while being stuck on what was expected of me without being given the freedom to spread my wings. Listening to different voices speak made me realise that we all struggle to find our independence differently. I want to be the change and not a prisoner of my mind and create the beautiful butterfly I envision. 

Change is inevitable and I am the Change I need to move forward. 

Patricia - Kenya

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My experience was kind of personal because as the independence topic was being discussed and how participants wanted to be free and felt held back I was thinking of my childhood when the main thing that I kept thinking of was independence. But independence to be myself I was obsessed with it. But only to grow up and realise that everybody/country/religion/culture is somehow looking for freedom, but freedom from what?

Timoh

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IT still disturbs my nervous system, actually, my whole being, to share and to admit as a white woman with black people present that I grew up believing that white people were better than all other people. Chrincing to admit that I can sense remnants of this white brainwashing.   

I want to stop speaking, stop the old knowing, and the judging, and stop being blind to my brainwashing.   I want to listen and let it land deeply inside me. I want to be part of a learning of new ways of relating. One that stops comparing, stops the dictatorship of hierarchies.

More and more I want to dance my independence, everybody's autonomy, independence and personal Sovereignty.

Saskia

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I was touched when a voice came out and said, “Someone put all these in our minds…why don't we put our differences aside and relate with each other…”. In our special way, we were doing so here in this group process.

We’ve made so much progress compared to the past and we celebrate each other's differences. We’re not there yet as there's still pain in the background but we're heading there. All of us are ambassadors of change no matter where we are from, and this is a great reason to celebrate our independence. A great way to realise that we are stronger and free to be ourselves truly and the judgemental role is a reminder of where we were. It is also what drives us to where we want to be.

Cynthia Wanjihia from Nairobi/Kenya

My heart is heavy. 

My heart is pounding. 

Tears are filling my eyes. 

Why have we been so evil?

I cannot only blame my ancestors. 

I cannot only blame “them”. 

I also play a role. 

My mind cannot comprehend the tragedies of the past and present. 

I cannot comprehend killing. 

Why have we been so evil?

Why the killing and the pain is still happening?

It´s inhumane. 

Blood-pumping hearts cannot do that to each other. 

Why am I staying silent?

Silence can also kill.

Iina from Helsinki/Finland

I listen to the voices of the young women. Listen to them speaking about not truly being independent and that there is so much more to be expressed. The longing to live more of ‘my self’ has always been with me too. I want to relate and share my path as a middle-aged woman who ‘fought her fight’ for independence. In the moment of sharing, I become aware of my Northern European privileges, thinking should I not rather listen than speak, have we not spoken enough from here?

After a short inner conversation, I continued to share a piece of my story. I love this topic ‘relating in a new way’ - GN/GS in the world channel - but also within me. I want to be there as a human being who listens and shares …. sometimes being more aware and sometimes less aware of ‘us together’ - but always ready to learn. I am learning from being here, thank you for sharing the space, thank you for teaching me, and thank you for learning together. 

Stephie from Hamburg/Germany

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I felt deeply the role of a young woman who is trying to find a way to feel independent in a society where someone says what is good and what is not good. I experience these kinds of situations where the voice that says what is good or not is silent and not evident but has a powerful impact on our way of relating to the world and others.

I find myself trapped in these situations and it’s difficult for me to find a way out and be courageous. Something that has shifted for me. It’s the power of diversity that changed something in me and makes me feel very privileged and lucky to be in situations where I can deeply connect with people from a lot of different countries.

Ilaria Saracino from Lecce, Italy

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The group process was touching for me, especially with the topic directly linking to the Jamhuri Day celebration and the whole conversation about being independent as a country but still not being self-independent.

I felt the role that spoke from not being part of the war/struggle but still being in a space where they many years on get to experience the perks that come with privilege.

I’d love to deepen the voice of being some kind of stranger in your own space and also the role of being directly impacted by the actions of the past.

Desmond Smith Mboya - KENYA

I was made to believe

I was born a second-class person, 

and my voice doesn’t count. 

When I look around and see 

the injustice happening to others, 

the power inside me brings me to the verge.

I’m saying out loud, this is not my cup of tea and I want to be free.

I want to break through that cage but I come across as hostile. 

By longing for my dignity, I hear people saying I’ve been radicalised. 

I simply want to be free.

Be free from beliefs about the world around me, around the world about me.

So are you, we are together in that.

I will be always bearing the scars from my past, 

they are the milestones of my journey. 

So are yours. 

Without you, I wouldn’t be me. 

Our connectivity brings space for new ways to be born. 

Let’s welcome it!

Marina originally from Ukraine, now in Munich/Germany

The role that had special energy was brought out by a Ukranian woman. Being a Kenyan I felt guilty and self-centred to celebrate independence while they fought for what they believed in, I knew there was a systemic issue in our country. This woman showed me that I could fight for what I stand for and it doesn't mean I am chaotic but I am finding a new way of relating - I realised that when she spoke about her history and her way of fighting for freedom.

Daisy

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Today, on Jamhuri Day in Kenya, I'm contemplating the psychological impact of colonialism and Western influence. The group process, as we discussed these issues, served as a valuable learning experience for me, especially in the context of finding new ways to relate. It underscored the significance of addressing hidden histories and global disparities. Despite the ongoing genocide in three African countries, there is a disconcerting lack of global outrage, emphasizing the urgent need for Africa and the global south to assert their voices and rightful place in the world.

Isaac Mwenja / KENYA

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Jamhuri Day (Republic Day) is a national holiday in Kenya, celebrated on 12 December each year.^[1] Jamhuri is the Swahili word for "republic" and the holiday officially marks the date when Kenya became a independent country on 12 December 1963, six months after gaining internal self-rule on 1 June 1963 (Madaraka Day) from the United Kingdom. Kenya later became an republic, with the inauguration of Jomo Kenyatta as president taking place on 12 December 1964, exactly one year after Kenya attained independence in 1963. Kenyatta, having previously been sworn in as Prime Minister, continued as prime minister of newly independent Kenya, before assuming the position of President one year after Independence Day.

Source: wikipedia

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After reflections of the group

• I feel the shift as I get to be in a space where I focus on both appreciating the independence but also the struggle of self-independence and trying to find the balance. Its really interesting to have various voices that can bring out these roles and help voice out in such a way that I feel both sides. I wasn’t part of the struggle for independence but I feel the role now better and see and also see the new possibilities that accompany the same, finding new ways. Smith

• About the topic, which was finding a new way to relate with each other as people from different ethnicities and backgrounds, I loved how everyone was able to relate with each other. It stirred up beautiful feelings, as humans as people who face the same joys and hardships. Cynthia

• A lot has shifted. I want to make the world a better place by playing a critical role in controlling what I feed the world and what the world feeds me in terms of media. I believe I have the power to do that. Mildred

• My experience of the group process is very personal and intimate in a way because sometimes I find it difficult to speak up but at the same time I love to be part of them, I feel deeply connected to the voices and the presence of the people and I learn a lot through them. Ilaria

• Touchingly beautiful and powerful process of getting together from different parts of the world by letting our voices sing from their deepest memories and intertwine in a new more appealing way. Our meeting on Jamhuri Day makes me alive, revives the frozen emotions and brings in a reflection on whether we are independent. Marina

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About 🌏 Worldwork

Worldwork is an application of Processwork also known as process-oriented psychology. As a psychological and conflict-resolution approach developed by Arnold Mindell in the 1970s, it's based on the principles of Jungian psychology, Taoism, and systems theory, and it is used in various settings, including therapy, organizational development, community building, and conflict resolution. At its core, Worldwork aims to explore and understand both individual and collective processes in order to address conflicts, promote personal growth, and transform tensions into co-creative energy in relationships within groups and communities. It focuses on bringing awareness to marginalised or ignored perspectives, as well as the deeper layers of consciousness within individuals and groups.

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The initiators of this space

Stephanie Bachmair (founder B.ONFIRE) is a communication passionate, facilitator, leadership coach, and process work diplomat. She supports individuals, teams, and organizations to explore and craft their stories, tell them with charisma, relate to their audience, and increase their transformative power through dialogue. 

Penny Watson (MACF) works as a coach, group facilitator and community development worker. She loves working with people in nature using process-orientated earth-based practices. She lives in Mparntwe, Alice Springs, and is deeply inspired by the people and lands of the Central Australian Desert.

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If you want more

• In case you have questions about Worldwork Journalism as a project or about joining the group, please write to info@b-onfire.com.

• If you are interested in knowing more & experiencing process work, there is a Deep Democracy / facilitative leadership training coming up soon: Myth&Truth - 7th to 9th of December 2023 in Hamburg. More info here.

• More Writing/Reading/Podcast … B.ONFIRE Insights&Conversations is a separate publication here on Substack

• For professional updates on leadership, communication, and facilitation check our website www.b-onfire.com, and other social media channels: https://linktr.ee/b_onfire