Offering channels for participation

There is an activity called the Spectrum Game. In this game, participants line up one behind the other – the middle line where they start is called “No mans land.” Then to their right is “Strongly agree” and to their left is “strongly disagree.” The participants are asked a series of questions to which they are supposed to move anywhere between the poles of strongly agree and strongly disagree. The only place they are not allowed to stand is in “No mans land.” They are then invited to share why they moved to the position they did.

The question I asked was “I can confidently communicate in my native language” – after a short pause most participants moved towards their left – towards strongly disagree. One participant moved to the right strongly agree.

When asked why he said “English is my native language.”

Its very instinctive to have an immediate reaction to that. Some people will place him in a particular box to say how he hasn’t been taught his native language and will see it as a ‘problem that needs to be fixed.’ (His grasp of Gujarati was actually pretty strong.)

This was during a programme in which he had come to India to explore the social development sector and through the process reflect on his identity and relationship with India. He was curious to find out more about India and his relationship with India, he wanted India to play a role in his life and yet his perception of his native language was not consistent this.

It demonstrated to me that given the opportunity, there is a generation growing up that is curious to understand themselves more deeply. That if we can inspire their interests it will have a knock on effect to culture, expressed through language, arts, dance, music, philosophy, etc.

The challenge is often the way these cultural practices is presented to them. That they don’t see the relevance in who they are as a young person growing up in Britain. Tools like language are often taught in a void where the application is simply to gain a GCSE early. When we create tangible opportunities, we give people an opportunity to experiment for themselves what they value and to what extent. The rest they will do for themselves.

Creating the opportunity for a community’s future

I was fortunate to be part of a workshop exploring the interest to nurture the next generation of leadership in the African-Caribbean community.

Recognising that their community’s future was an issue they cared deeply about, 30 people chose to be there. They were all experienced community leaders most over the age of 40 with a few notable young people. We started the workshop with a round of introductions; the depth of experience and the belief with which they spoke was humbling. It was like I had been given access to a community’s internal strength.

What came out early on was the acceptance that the world had changed, that the aspirations of their young people were different and that despite the vast experience in the room, they didn’t have all the answers to the challenges their community faces in the world. That what they had done and why they had done it was relevant to that point in time and that their responsibility now was to “pass on the baton.” To equip their young people with what they needed to meet their needs in 21st Century Britain.

In one discussion a comment was raised “Look at the Asian’s. They are so organised and are able to make things happen for themselves.” I listened for a while, but then I had to step out of my role as a facilitator to share my perspective. That, from the outside it may appear that we are group, yet I, as an outsider to their community felt a similar opinion towards them. We see their voice heard in fields such as sport and politics where there is significantly lower Indian representation. It came as a bit of a surprise to them. External perception is one of the major barriers that prevents deeper engagement and understanding to address the challenges that communities face and the opportunity to address them together.

What struck me through the workshop was the openness in the room. They weren’t sweeping issues into hushed corners, they were clearly acknowledging that issues exists and that proactive steps need to be taken to create the future they desire. That some issues were external which they have some control over but that their internal issues are ones they should take full responsibility of.

This combination of taking responsibility and recognising that they didn’t quite know where exactly to go next created a unique invitation where they are willing to ask open questions to which the spectrum of opportunity is vast.

The need is right where we are

Over the last few years ‘strategic philanthropy’ has been getting more and more in vogue. Several new charities add to the annual calender of fundraiser balls, adventure activities and events to raise money for projects to ‘serve the needy in India’. The new organisations operate with slightly more sophisticated marketing and communications budgets, a written giving model they spend time communicating impact on an annual basis.

The traditional charities continue to operate with their generally small but loyal supporter base who continue to donate to schools, hospitals, medical camps, temples and the like. Often driven from a religious or community connection, these charities were started many years ago and have sustained over several years/decades. The work is probably not as well documented or presented or ‘efficient’, but through sheer persistence and faith they endure.

It is probably difficult to calculate clearly how much money is being sent through such channels and I presume that no direct work has been done to gather that data. There are several visible organisations in the UK that provide a philanthropy as a service and appeal to a population who are looking for a more modern way of serving the poor. These organisations present themselves to suit the audience they wish to attract donations from. Some are issue focused, eg, education, others will reach out to those with an affinity to a geographic area, eg South Asia, many are faith based and call of to believers of a particular sect. A sense of community is built around those identities and through that motivate to give.

I’m sure the motivation to fund raise for these charities goes beyond the urge to ‘serve the needy in India.’ Part of the reason could include religious or spiritual guidance/advice that serving those less fortunate is important. I suspect part of the motivation may simply be benign self-aggrandizement.

But why specifically in India? There are needy people all over the world – even in the African countries we called home for a few decades. I would like to hear more thoughts on why there is an urge to support humanitarian projects in India?

In a previous post, I have explored the nature of the changing relationship of 2nd and 3rd generation Indians to the land of their ancestors. That early generations had an emotional tie to India rooted in a personal experience of having lived there. With 2nd and 3rd generation Indian’s in the UK, their impression of India is influenced by the Western notions of aspiration and lifestyle. Previously, I asked the question, “what is the relationship you would like your grandchildren to have with India?”

Charitable donations provide one way of tangibly expressing the emotional link to India and fulfilling some perceived responsibility. Those donations support projects to which the individual has a personal connection and through donations they are sustained.

As notions of community and ties with India fade within 2nd and 3rd generation British Indians, what is the impact on future philanthropic giving to India? Going forward, there may not be the same loyalty to donating to the projects that have previously been supported by parents and grandparents. Why should they favour donations to India over any other country? What happens to those on the ground reliant on those donations?

For 2nd and 3rd generation British Indians, what has India done for them that they feel more motivated to give to India over any other developing country? If we believe that India and Indian Culture should play a role in the lives and identity of our young people, we may need to consider how they perceive and value India and its culture in their lives.

I believe that now is the time to turn our gaze to a much more immediate and broader horizon. That we find real ways to invest in our young peoples understanding of themselves, the role of their Indian values, culture and community plays in their life and that must happen in their lives in the UK. Instead of continuing to just give to India. What if we channeled resources to programmes and initiatives within the UK to support our young people – kinda like a Princes Trust for the Indian community in the UK?

Deepening aspirations

Finish school, get into a good university to study a course with good job prospects, graduate then secure a role in a reputable company and soon enough purchase a property and then find a marriage partner, attend social events, go on regular holidays and generally live a good life. This process must be quite familiar and the aspirations not particularly different to any other young person growing up in the UK.

My challenge is that as a generation this appears to be the extent of our aspirations. Yes entrepreneurs step out, yes we progress to influential positions in large companies. But i’m calling out for trailblazers, for those that are willing to tread a new path that will raise the bar for our measures of progress and definition of success.

Lets look back just 1 generation, in August 1972 the entire Indian population of Uganda was expelled by the dictator Idi Amin. They were given 90 days to leave the country or face being put into concentration camps.

As with most migrants, their first challenge was to build a sense of security and stability. A steady job, a home to keep the family safe and to provide for the future of their children. In such difficult times, people come together out of necessity and find meaning in their collective struggle. Decisions were often made without the luxury of alternatives. Aspirations were defined by immediate needs and compromise was assumed.

As a 2nd generation, British born and educated person, I often look around to what’s next for me. I’ve had the opportunity to work for large professional organisations. I’ve exercised my choice to leave work to go travel, volunteer and even remain idle. I was able to do all this with the firm knowledge that I always had a secure home to return to and the likelihood of ever going hungry was negligible.

The challenge for most people of my generation unlike just 1 generation back is not ‘can I afford a car,’ but ‘which car do I buy and when do I upgrade it.’ Yes job security is challenging, but we have a lot more in terms of qualifications and mobility to know that we can secure another job reasonably easily.

This post isn’t just about job security. This post is about redefining aspiration and the willingness to take risk and work tirelessly to overcome the challenges inherent in uncertainty. This isn’t simply to overcome challenges that we see, but more difficult is to overcome the challenges to come, those that we can’t see. To ask ourselves the difficult questions about what the rites of passage of the next generation will be? What are we doing now, preparing and planting, that will give our children richer more wholesome lives – that have the balance of physical, material security and a deep sense and awareness of who they are. That awareness will give them the belief that they can make a difference in the world and they will do so rooted in their cultural and personal values. The aspiration is for a new breed of principled leadership.

What is the relationship you would like your grandchildren to have with India?

No doubt many of you have ticked the box ‘Asian-Indian’ in various forms, census etc. I wanted to use this to look at exploring our ‘Indian’ identity. I’m assuming there is some weak, strong or loose connection with India or may be to the ‘idea of India’ beyond the nation state.

It’s about my observations (and perhaps prejudices) about the varying relationships that British Indians have with the land of their ancestors. It’s not questioning loyalty to India or Britain, but more a look at the depth and breadth of the relationship, how that the relationship is changing and what we would like it to be.

The global Indian diaspora story I’ll leave for another day. But even though our journeys are different, we can learn much from each other in understanding about the British-Indian community.

My family migrated to the UK after a period in East Africa. During this journey the extended family carried with them their culture and identity. While in East Africa, my family like others sustained their sense of community and collective memories with, among other things, letters, young people returning to study in India’s schools and rituals mostly connected with their faith. Not very complicated. Most of the memories were grounded in an experience of India and I’m sure there are numerous examples that you could share too. Their connection to India wasn’t really debated, it was just there – it is one that I intend to speak to my grandparents about and urge you to do the same to contribute to this narrative.

The relationship was underpinned by an emotional tie. Dinner table conversations, listening to All India Radio on crackly short wave radios, letters, the odd phone call, sepia tinted pictures, bedtime stories and religious rituals all helped to build a collective memory with children.

Skip forward a generation and things may be different for later second and third generation children, born and brought up in the UK and wholly assimilated into the fabric of Britain. These days the stories are heard in a vacuum, perhaps devoid of personal experience and the emotional ties. India may be just another foreign country, all be it, one that they sense some greater or lesser connection to.

Moreover, our images of India are often heard without the experience and filtered through the lens of a western education and media portraying the country as part of ‘the poor south.’ Is it too strong to say that the general impression is one of superiority and a patriarchy that comes with a upbringing in the West. The picture in the mind of children is often tainted, partial and distorted. This in turn prejudices and narrows their experience of India and inhibits their freedom to explore. The challenge is how to become less judgemental, and then to explore how to develop, deepen and broaden their understanding of India.

When, or perhaps if, they do eventually land in India, the noise, the smells, the heat perhaps reinforce the partial perception that has been created. Many may struggle to look past these sensory shocks. Their time in India may be a rush between hotels, shops, tourist sites and now distant relatives. They return to the UK and fall back into their busy lives and the opportunity to reflect on their experience is rarely offered. A generalisation? Yes. But please feel free to share your experiences.

Parallel to this disconnection, India, over the last 20 years, has come into fashion: economic growth; a lucrative cricket industry; ‘ethnic print and design’ gaining recognition; Bollywood; Indian literature and the overabundance of  TV channels from the sub-continent are among the many changes. ‘Indian culture’ is making its mark on the lifestyles of cosmopolitan cities around the world in more ways than just yoga classes and Indian food in mainstream supermarkets.

India is now a more open economy, foreign investment is rising, NRIs are buying properties and stock markets are generally healthy. Indeed, many ‘Asian-Indians’ leverage their ‘Indian-ness’ (maybe it’s just speaking the language) to present a more nuanced understanding of India. Maybe they are not much better than other opportunists and have found a sudden use for their ‘Indian-ness.’

To return to this issue of identity. It is something that seems to come up more often. Perhaps it is  reflective of the privileged status many Indians now find themselves in — a position and security that previous generations did not have. The identity debate goes beyond the ‘Asian-Indian’ people. Indeed it rears its head in different forms in different generations and certainly not exclusive to the Indian diaspora. ‘Britishness’ was brought to the fore in the Opening Ceremony of the London Olympic Games.

Second and Third generation Indians see themselves and their ‘identity’ as different to first generation Indians – be they skilled professionals, unskilled migrants from rural areas, those arriving on student visas and the many ‘illegal’ migrants trying to find ways to stay and earn money in the UK. These Indian’s are often derogatorily termed ‘freshies’ or ‘fresh off the boat.’

Regardless, there appears to be a selectiveness about what aspects of India we want to be associated with. It may be human nature to select the positive (cricket, a thrusting IT sector, music etc) and turn a blind eye to the negative. It may also be based on an underlying insecurity.

Perhaps there are other reasons. Is this search hinting at something deeper – that second and third generation Indian’s in the UK are searching for? That they realise their image of India is actually someone else’s stories of India. That they are not sure which idea of India they connect to. That many beliefs they have been brought up with and assumed to live seem lost in their understanding and experience of the world – that in some way their ‘Indian culture’ doesn’t really fit in their world. This isn’t just a question of which cricket team they support or whether they are up on Bollywood films or celebrating festivals. It goes further. It goes to their values and self image. Their home (and mine) is the UK. We are very comfortable about that. There is, however, a subtle aspect of their identity that seeks grounding. That the second/third hand stories are not quite enough. That the next time they visit India should be more than to shop for their wedding clothes. How far these thoughts run through the diverse Indian diaspora is open to debate.

I’d like to close with some questions for yourself, your family and your friends.  What is or was the relationship your parents or grandparents have or had with India? How would you describe and define your relationship with India? What is the relationship you would like your grandchildren to have with India?  And finally, how do we collectively or individually bring about this relationship?

Does a more positive image of India benefit the British-Indian community in the UK?

There is a short activity called “Fishbowl” which we have used to demonstrate how internal and external perception is often misaligned.

The first group of 8 people sit in the middle and are given a list of 10 or so points or points about “what it means to be Indian.” Examples include: ‘I have family in India’; ‘I support the Indian cricket team’ or ‘My religio-cultural roots originate in India’. Their task is to put them in order of importance to them. To some extent, it doesn’t matter so much what order they are put in – it generally stimulates good questions which are continued beyond the session. The group is given about 15 minutes to complete the task.

There is a second group, of 4 people who sit on the outside of the circle and they are tasked to make notes on what they observe of the inside group: who actively participated, who was quiet, any stand out remarks or behaviours.

What this activity does is distinguishes the process from content of the task. With the inside group busy with the content of ordering the list, the outside group are able to observe the process. Several points come out in the debrief of this activity and it provides a vivid and immediate personal feedback.

Beyond the activity, one of the key points to note is as a community we live in a wider context. While we are busy internally figuring out whatever it is that we are figuring out, there are people/organisations observing us. They are not really concerned by the content of what it is that we are doing. But they do form perceptions based on what they see us doing and carry with them certain ideas and judgements. So even though I am born and brought up in the UK and internally I may hold certain perceptions of my identity, my skin is brown and walking around town when people see me, they recognise me first as ‘Indian’ or ‘Asian.’ It’s fair to assume that they won’t walk up to me and ask me questions about how I define my identity in order understand who I am.

So now, if the external perception is that I am Indian, then very quickly I am associated with the country India. So if India is seen in a positive light, that reflects on me. If India is seen as a land of poor rural villages and snake charmers that too is projected onto me.

So I want to leave you with a few question: Does a more positive image of India benefit the British-Indian community in the UK? Are we far enough away and absorbed into mainstream Britain to not be associated with India? And do we have a role in forming opinion a more positive image of India?