Some of you may remember that two years ago at the CPP conference at Walsh University, there was a group from Kenya called the Simba Maasai Cultural Performers who shared some of their culture’s traditions with us.
The group is particularly of interest to philosophers of peace, because the group addresses the peace-making aspects of their tradition. In fact, Francis and John ole Sakuda have created a “Peace Tree Museum” near their rural homes, where they document the role of plants and trees in peace-making rituals as well as medicinal uses. Francis has come annually to the U.N. Indigenous People’s Forum, and is well-versed in the topic of the fight of indigenous peoples around the world for their rights. The group has been doing an annual tour of the U.S. each September and October.
Please consider hosting them at your university. They perform traditional dances, songs and rituals, as well as lectures. They need travel expenses and housing covered, and an honorarium. Hopefully your university may have resources for such performances and lectures through a Student Activity fund. You’ll find that compared to local performers, their costs are quite reasonable. And, all of the proceeds they receive from their honoraria go straight to their nonprofit organization to further development in their area of Maasailand. If you are interested in hosting them this fall, please write me at Gpresbey1 at cs dot com
