Sarah Mehmout works at a community centre serving the Algerian and Arab populations in Montreal. She and her sister Meriam are both students of psychology at a French university. Their homeland was colonized by France from 1830 to 1903. Sarah works with violence cessation. In 1830, France had invaded and colonized countries in the West Indies, Guadeloupe and Martinique, French Guiana and the Indian Ocean (Réunion), as well as the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon in Turtle Island. The invasion of Algeria in 1830 marked the beginning of a new French colonial empire in Africa. After years of resisting French oppression, Algeria’s full-fledged war of independence lasted from 1954 to 1962. Reports estimate as many as 1.5 million Algerians were killed due to colonization, by direct violence as well as starvation, lack of medical care and other forms of mistreatment. Sarah and Meriam both had a lot to say about resistance and about show Arab families in Quebec do not trust the Quebec social services, largely due to arrogant Quebecois cultural assumptions, impositions and high rates of child removal, rather than true assistance based on respect and care. Today, approximately 73,770 Algerians live in Canada; 59,585 reportedly living in Montreal, particularly in “Little Magreb.”
I met Sarah and Meriam at a Resisting Colonizations conference at the University of Quebec à Montréal last week and was impressed by their presentation on decolonial psychology. They cited thinkers such as Franz Fanon, articulating a culturally-centered, collectivist approach to community living in contrast to western psychologies pathologizing and individualizing approaches, based on colonial values of western/white superiority. I think you will enjoy listening to Sarah and Meriam, particularly their passion, their love of their family and culture. Themes of solidarity and support across group lines emerge, often highlighted by sharing, generosity and community care.
Links:
Video: Deconstruction with Algerian philosopher Jacques Derrida
The Life and Works of Franz Fanon.
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