Minutes by Nora

Karin: most things in the archive are letters. Amazed how patient he did the letters to explain his concepts.

Marianne: Circulation of theory through letters.  Publication “Letters to Guinea Bissau” – form of letter.

O: most letters are by the secretaries, answering he is abroad. Find secretaries and interview them.

Carmen: I chose the letter because it had handwriting (connected to fetishizing handwriting). And because of images (Images missing here). Answer to Graham, 1978. You should invite invitation by UNESCO. He was an educationalist seemingly. The letter by Graham connected to Yuk Lins presentation. Become educational advisor in Ramallah, by UNESCO, other to China.  Interesting: how decisions are taken.

Andrea: that he replies “Unesco”, not Palestine is interesting.

O: connections between UNESCO and WCC are many, has to be researched.

George: the time, 1979, my own history. Zimbabwe. I was involved in Britain in My father was in Britain, and sent me this kind of airmail letters. We also started to look for Freire, to see whether his experience in Guineau Bissau could tell us something. I came to Nicaragua (?), and then Freire was a reference there again.

Yuk Lin: 1960ies, then China was in cultural revolution. it was chaotic, no schools. Students didn’t gpo to university. Since Mao died, then the situation changed.

Carmen: And then this guy was invited.

George: Tanzania: ASK for REFERENCES

Nana: Circle, eyes and love by a fan. Absolutely struck by his lectures, did not read his books but his eyes. This speaks to his charisma. This charisma is also very gendered, interesting to take into account. I picked other fan/friendship letters. He must have been informed by their questions.

M: he decided to grow the beard while in Harvard. In previous research: this made him so charismatic

Nana: This is also something reoccurring: this “love” ….is part of liberatory movements. In has a performative dimension.

Carmen: Shoshana Felman, “when eros swallows chalk”, german publication

Nana: charismatic teachers. Many times teachers of color; attract many students. Statistics: 80% prefer a teacher of color.

Carmen: but also statistic: teachers get lower ratings.

Emma: Another Fan letter. Jim Firrows, Konstanz, 1975. Professional/existential crisis, desire to work with ideas of Freire, but compromised by his bourgious position, and maybe a pseudo do-gooder. I identify strongly with the man at this point in the research project.

another document: draft for international peace research institute. “We should never mythologize education…” Statement on the political of education

Kitto: Australia seminar videos, 1974. William Kennedy. Why I chose: commission of Christian education. Because of interest for this religious influence also in Uganda. 4 points I get out of it: Titles of the books: Education for the critical consciousness. 2) the language used: “Affluent societies such as theirs”. “pharrexies (?)”. If you follow the pattern it shows hidden parts of the knowledges of what they give to us who receive gladly. Amusing: Our problem about being at the assembly havce to do with the limitation. Only 7 advisors from the whole world. Some must be women. As much as we would like to have you, we cannot. Some one like me, and you, white, male, middle class. Black young women have all the advantages. (William Kennedy)

O: he was the director. We selected this because of tapes of videos, supposedly should have been sent.

George: there is a Quarrel between Freire and Cabral about women. Reference?

Hussein: “Freire of free space”, New Zealand. 1974. “No teachers have nothing to learn, and no students have nothing to teach. Talks about defects of his book: lack of method. Freire: is not important. Important is political clarity. Political clarity is here leftist. “In starting to work with the people you discover the instrument”. But which instrument? I do not mean that Freire leaves a backdoor for authoritarian teachers, but it is not clear to me. When he says: as long as it coheres with your political vision, it will be the right ones. But which political vision.

Lerato: Curious that in 1974 they say that black women have advantages. Same as now in south Africa. White man go on and on.

Sao Tomé: you should not say illiterate, but on the way to literacy. And education is not technical, but political exercise. Think of class as cultural group. Two way exercise.