Wo Firi Ha?—An Exploration of the Facets of Belonging
Keywords:
citizenship, Ghana, Blackness, white supremacy, white saviourism, community, settler-colonialism, performative allyshipAbstract
“Wo firi ha?” in the Twi language of the Akan people of Ghana translates to “Are you from here?”—a phrase often uttered with skepticism in an attempt to investigate if one really is who they claim to be. The words might be of Ghanaian origin, but the sentiment is felt both in Ghana and in Canada. This photo essay is a compilation of stories unfolding on both sides of the ocean that highlight the intricacies of continuously redefining citizenship within these contexts. Throughout this paper, we analyze the concept of Blackness as performance, what it means to “help Africa help itself,” the question “where are you really from?”—often asked of racialized people—and, finally, our experiences of belonging through rejection. This paper concludes with an intersectional review of the structures and systems that uphold these narratives, including post-colonialism, internalized superiority, and the surveillance of Black bodies.
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