(Earlier this week, I sent the following note about Karibu to a close group of contacts. Considering how the pandemic exacerbated inequities and displacement of some of the most vulnerable communities in the U.S. and around the world, and since it was World Refugee Day, I felt compelled to share, despite it being uncomfortable as it was to self-promote and lay out my thoughts like this).
The World is Moving
The world is moving, and has moved more than ever over the past year. People are moving. Large groups of people are (forcibly) moving. Work is moving. Even infrastructure is moving. It’s been a season like none other, a moment where the concept of connecting, belonging, and a sense of home were ripped apart and redefined.
Movement is the Story of America
There’s been a lot of movement, but movement should be a story familiar to most who live in America. In one of my daughter’s books, Her Right Foot, there are these lines and images about the Statue of Liberty that I absolutely love:
"But few talk about the foot that is so obviously in mid-stride. About the fact that her entire right leg is in mid-stride. What does this mean? What does this mean that we often forget about this right foot, this right leg?...Here is a theory…
If the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of freedom, if the Statue of Liberty has welcomed millions of immigrants to the United States, then how can she stand still?...After all, the Statue of Liberty is an immigrant, too. And this is why she’s moving. This is why she’s striding."
And for those of who live in the Bay Area, San Francisco's Mayor has expressed similar sentiments: “we are a city surrounded by bridges, not one divided by walls.” Immigration, movement, and hospitality is the story of America. In this melting pot, movement leads to improvement. But despite the massive displacement and migration of people around the world, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic, 2020 was a record low for hospitality, with the U.S. admitting barely over 21,000 refugees. Thankfully, the cap increased this year, even if slightly.
It’s on us to be bridges, to open doors and extend ourselves to welcome the wanderer and understand the cultural depth which has been enriched by those who paved the foundation of our communities long ago (including our own ancestors). We are to be a nation that not only welcomes the foreigner, we need the foreigner to sustain and grow as a country. We celebrate movement.
Introducing (the early stages of) Karibu
With that context, and on the day after World Refugee Day, I wanted to share and invite you to participate in a project called Karibu: www.gokaribu.com. We’re still in very early stages; as you can see, there’s nothing fancy. I’m really just preparing the soil and planting the seeds right now.
Karibu means "welcome" in Swahili. So in the same spirit, Karibu's mission is to make people feel welcomed and the world more familiar through human connections, cultural understanding, and a deeper sense of community. We do this through hosting live, virtual, and personalized experiences of cultures, and interests that are curated and guided by locals.
Prior to the pandemic, the concept was to host in-person sessions where people from different cultures would share their stories -- things they loved about their home country, points of interest, best ways to experience it, their journey to the America, cultural differences they experienced -- paired with a hands-on, cultural activity -- cooking, crafts, music, etc -- where you're learning something and getting to know each other on a deeper level in the process.
COVID-19 obviously disrupted everything. So for the time being, I’ve been experimenting with virtual sessions, like most things continue to be these days, where audiences can explore other cultures and meet new people who live in the same city. I thought it could be a nice way to connect people in our communities and whet our appetites for travel and exploration as the world begins to open up (the world is moving still). And as it becomes safer to gather in person, I look forward to resuming that format again!
You're Invited to Participate
I humbly invite you to check out upcoming Karibu sessions scheduled in July and August -- you can sign up here or choose specific sessions below. There is a fee of $5/person. Additionally, we’ll make a donation for every person who signs up for a session to an agency assisting countries that are still in dire situations, such as Nepal, in an effort to support those who are still suffering from the pandemic.
If you can’t make these sessions, consider signing up for an account here and we’ll keep you updated on news and future sessions.
In the end, this is an experiment in many ways. My hope with this project and these notes are that it would highlight the cultural expansiveness of our community and the plight of those who are sojourning to find their community.
There’s so much more I’d like to share and topics to explore. Along with Karibu, which is only a small endeavor, I invite you to explore and welcome others with me. And congrats if you read through it all.
-Alex
P.S. If you’re interested in helping, hosting a session, know someone who might host, or simply talking about these topics, please let me know! If you know someone who might be interested in receiving these emails, feel free to forward this note and they can subscribe here.