It’s Day 12 of the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, and it’s my birthday. I have never celebrated my birthday outside of Zimbabwe, and this has been quite an experience. Not much hype was made at my request, but it was a warm feeling to have my African friends sing “Happy Birthday” for me. Thank you for your warmth, YALI Fellows!
The day’s sessions were equally great. We started off with a talk on the work done around gender-based domestic violence issues in the United States. Carol Post, Director of the Delaware Coalition against Domestic Violence (www.dcadv.org), shed light on the history and work of the institution since its inception in 1994. The organization offers support in the form of information dissemination, policy and advocacy programs, social change efforts, psyco-social support, and many other activities. It was most interesting to note how institutions such as this one have a complete support structure for stakeholders or beneficiaries thanks to aid offered by the federal government and other fundraising efforts. This was a very fascinating thing to note as I have realized that, in many cases back home, efforts to support victims or survivors of domestic violence have been disjointed. Somewhere along the chain of assistance are several gaps which leave the victim without a continuing structure of support, and oftentimes, this might lead to them falling back into a cycle of violence. Many fellows seemed to have a wide experience of domestic violence cases in their home countries, and this made the session very interactive and shed light on the many facets in which domestic violence occurs around the world.
Carol Post explains the work of DCDV to YALI fellows
In the afternoon, we were treated to a session of fine art at the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts (http://www.thedcca.org/) in Wilmington, DE. I must say I’m beginning to gain a bit of appreciation for art works which are not just theatre plays or stage performances. I am now more interested in the colors, textures, and histories of works of art thanks to a similar session we had last week with the African American Art Exhibit at Mechanical Hall on the University of Delaware’s campus.
A painting of one of America’s finest African American Heroes, Muhammad Ali, at the African America Art Museum at UD
YALI fellows at the Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts
YALI fellows enjoy an interactive work of art at the DCCA
This session at the DCCA, as well as the stories of the rich history of Delaware and the United States, have really left me and many others on this program amazed at how far this country has come while still preserving its stories in works of art kept as great treasures in many different forms.
YALI Fellows experience the Old State House, an historical site in Dover, DE
Passy Mubalama, YALI fellow from DRC, at the Constitutional Center in Philadelphia
I have about five more weeks left in this country, but I am sure that, the longer I stay here, the more conviction I will have to go back home and learn more about my country, its rich history, and how best to share it with the world.
Thank you, UD. It’s been a memorable birthday!