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Building bridges between cultures in conflicts

Sun, 2007-05-13 18:27 — elaine

WiA Online Convergence 2007 Presentation Discussions

Hi everyone

We'd like to hear from anyone trying to build bridges between cultures in conflicts. Can the internet help?

waiting to hear from you

Elaine Asmaa and Miri

cultures in conflict!

chalfaouat - 2007-05-15 13:08

Hi there,

Do you think there are cultures in conflict? Or they are political wills at conflict? Are you speaking about a situation wherein one "culture" tries to dominate another one via linguistic and mass media? Put differently, is occupation similar to conflict? Is it truly a problem when a certain textbook attempts to enhance some culture-bound concepts related to the cultural background of the targeted community, though they may trigger some sort of conflict with some other community? Don't you think that the word "culture" is an umbrella term subject to continuous changes depending on the socio-economic, political and geographico-demographic situation of any human group? Don't you expect "culture" to change under political suppression (e.g. Europe during the Nazi times, The Aborigines in Australia, Palestinians at the time being inter alia)? Are bridges that easy to build? In his The Moon Is Down (1942), the American novelist John Steinbeck says: "all invaded people want to resist," Do you think this is against your endeavours at building bridges between cultures?

I'm would certainly like to attend such thought provoking discussion.

reply

In our presentation we don't

elaine - 2007-05-16 08:36

In our presentation we don't get into politics because this quickly builds rifts between people, but in our projects we have tried to find common ground to form connections between people who would never normally meet. Just talking can increase respect for one another, as well as understanding and reducing stereotyping.