Taking sensitive stories on tour
Developed in collaboration with the Canadian Council for Refugees and Montreal Life Stories, Mapping Memories is a participatory multimedia project that helps youth with refugee experiences create and then share their stories to diverse publics in Montreal.
A major aspect of the project is the Youth Speaking Tour, where young refugees visit schools in Quebec to discuss, among other things, refugee experiences and human rights issues, and to make students aware of the Mapping Memories book and DVD.
“We want to build sensitivity and understanding with students around the area,” Elizabeth Miller said, explaining her Mapping Memories project. Miller is an associate professor in the Department of Communication Studies.
On March 24, Miller and Michele Luchs presented On Tour With Sensitive Stories, a morning keynote address that was part of the month-long wrap of the project that has come be known as Montreal Life Stories (the full title is Life Stories of Montrealers Displaced by War, Genocide and Other Human Rights Violations).
“The immediacy of a visit is powerful,” said Miller.
Miller and Luchs told the story of Leontine Uwababyeyi, who was orphaned during the Rwandan genocide. She was 19 years old when she left her native Rwanda on her own and came to Montreal. Uwababyeyi, now studying sociology and psychology at the University of Montreal, is one of the speakers on the Youth Speaking Tour.
Those in attendance on Saturday morning watched an excerpt of Uwababyeyi’s story from the Mapping Memories DVD, in which she tells of her experience fleeing her home when the genocide began.
“After showing it,” Leontine said of sharing her multimedia story, “you are not just living in the past, but you can see the future and be in the present. It makes you feel free.”
Miller and Luchs gave much thought to the “problematics of curiosity versus the youths' well-being.” When they first began the speaking tour, they were concerned about how the youth would field questions such as, “But how exactly did you escape?”
“Students don’t always know when they are crossing a sensitive boundary” explained Miller. “Our challenge has been to create a safe environment where students can ask questions, and where the speakers are not expected to relive a traumatic experience.”
Exposing the youth to the press was also a difficult decision for Miller, who struggled with how to be “responsible but not maternal” towards the speakers.
“Too often reporters are more interested in a traumatic moment and don’t understand how certain questions can trigger past memories,” she explained. She spoke of a time when one youth was asked by a member of the media about how it felt to watch her brother die in front of her.
“Inappropriate questions can come from anywhere and anytime, so reflecting on this as a group becomes important,” Miller said.
Offering refugee youth with a chance to share their stories with classrooms around Montreal is a powerful way of breaking down stereotypes about refugees. The speaking tour is helping high school students to feel connected to history, to consider their role as global citizens, and to make schools a safer place for any newcomer.
A French version of the project book Mapping Memories: Participatory Media, Place-based Stories and Refugee Youth was released on March 20. Both English and French copies of the book (with accompanying DVD) are available for purchase or can be found on the Mapping Memories website.
Related links:
• Mapping Memories
• Canadian Council for Refugees
• Montreal Life Stories