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The totalizing narrative coming from the Oromo side doesn’t sit right with me either. But I don’t think minimizing/glossing over the damages done in the process of state building, thereby dismissing people’s legitimate grievances, is the right response to those narratives. 1/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698002109046790
I agree that these myths play a huge role, but suggesting they’re the only factors at play is a dangerous generalization that silences/gaslights. There are legitimate grievances alongside these myths—we should try to unpack and address those. 2/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698004126507008?s=20
As I said previously, I'm aware of the centuries-long “interactions”. Oromo historians write about this. My home province (or at least parts of it) belonged to the Kafa (according to local Oromos’ oral history) before Faxansa Iluu took it for the Oromo 3/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698006001360897?s=20
Oromo liberation politicians did push totalizing narratives to expedite political action, thereby miseducating so many Oromos who now mistake political propaganda for historical fact/truth. This is certainly a huge factor in today’s politics/conversations, but not all of it. 4/
Agreed that Oromos participated in the longer project that led to the eventual formation of the state. I often think that Oromos wanting out of the Ethiopian state is like Man United wanting to leave the EPL because it hasn’t won the league in a while. 5/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698012016041985?s=20
I disagree with the implication that “Oromos took part in it, so what happened to Oromos as a result is kosher.” I don’t like how the involvement of Oromos in Menelik’s conquest is used to silence Oromos about their grievances. Two things here. 1: the logic is faulty. 6/
Forgive me for using an extreme analogy to make a point.
If a woman’s father raped her because a local warlord or someone paid him/coerced him, this “Oromos took part in it, so..." logic feels like telling the woman to shut up and move on because it was her dad...7/
If a woman’s father raped her because a local warlord or someone paid him/coerced him, this “Oromos took part in it, so..." logic feels like telling the woman to shut up and move on because it was her dad...7/
2. despite the participation of some Oromos in it, the Ethiopian state became one that privileged Amhara language, culture, & religion at the expense of others’, thereby making it a primarily Amhara endeavor. (Afraid to bring up African slave sellers in the transatlantic...) 8/
(Side note: many of these Oromos who participated in Menelik’s conquest—like Ras Gobena—are considered traitors by many Oromos. You may say that is political—who decides who is a traitor. Sure. But why is Ethiopia allowed to have all kinds of traitors and not Oromos?) 9/
I am not going to argue with your claim that Oromia is on par or ahead of others economically—I don’t know the numbers. I also don’t think they’re far-fetched numbers. Plus, the revolution has nationalized all land, etc. However, I have questions:
https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698013945438215?s=20
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https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698013945438215?s=20
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There are millions of Amharas in Oromia. A large chunk, if not the majority, are economic migrants. Why are there millions of Amharas in Oromia but not the other way around? What are the implications? What barriers are keeping Oromos from looking for work in the north? 11/
Wealth (& poli power + cultural domination via trendsetting) is concentrated in urban areas in Oromia, as is probs the case elsewhere. Urban areas (at least until EPRDF lost them to CUD in '05) were dominated by Amharic speaking migrants, biggest of whom are often Amharas 12/
Oromos were the minority (again, at least until 2005, when the EPRDF began taking action to alter demographics) in many, if not in the overwhelming majority, of cities/towns within Oromia. What are the implications of this? 13/
How do you think Oromos fare in these urban areas that privilege Amhara culture/language when they try to access and compete for economic opportunities, political power, & improved social status with Amharic speaking migrants? 14/
Surely these things have been improving, esp over the last 3 decades, as Afan Oromo became the language of power. And I bet the EPRDF’s efforts to further diversify urban populations has led to some visible changes over the past 15 years. But what of generational gains? 15/
Didn’t the privileging of Amharic & Amhara culture give certain people more access in the past, giving them & their descendants a head start? The revolution was a great equalizer in many ways, but many still kept homes, education, social status, etc. which make a difference. 16/
Calling the overt & covert language policies of successive Ethiopian regimes, which privileged & promoted Amharic by backing it with state resources through its use as admin language + language of instruction, as mere “bias” is an oversimplification. 17/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698019624509440?s=20
State bldg efforts via attempted homogenization did have negative consequences for those outside the lang/culture being privileged: from socio-psychological effects to disruption of cultural growth to alienating Oromos from centers of power (& econ/educational opportunities). 18/
The privileging of Amhara language/culture was also coupled with the denigration of Oromo culture/Oromonness, residues of which are still alive in urban spaces, especially Addis. What do you think of the negative portrayals of Oromos & their culture in popular culture? 19/
What do you think of the horrific denigration of Oromos that’s imbedded in Amharic proverbs/jokes? (Please consider this piece carefully and compassionately: https://curatethiopia.com/2019/12/20/culture/) 20/
Please also read this thread by my friend Meti, who was sharing her experiences in Addis as someone with an Oromo name/family: https://twitter.com/Meti_BT/status/985289725077573632
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She was also once told by one of her former bosses in Addis to get herself “an Ethiopian name.” What effect do you think these types of acts have on people individually and collectively? 22/
Meti’s experiences are not isolated. I’ve heard too many horrible things. But Oromos who share their experiences with prejudice in urban spaces are silenced/gaslighted. They’re asked for evidence, as if ppl take videos of 10th grade teacher suggesting they change their name. 23/
Or they’re told it never happened. Then the same people turn around & ask for scientific evidence. We have a poor country where hardly anything is studied. We cannot afford to keep silencing & gaslighting Oromos about their lived experiences until a study is done. 24/
Yes, overwhelming majority of Amharas don’t have the means to go to Addis/south to take advantage of their privileged language. But if an Oromo from Iluu & an Amhara from Gojjam, of same econ backgrounds, go to Addis on same day, the latter is less likely to face alienation. 25/
He'll have less barriers to opportunities.
Are these not things we need to confront? Is it fair for Oromos to be made to feel like foreigners in their own country? Why do we dismiss & minimize it? Why do we silence & gaslight Oromos? Why doesn’t this make us angry? 26/
Are these not things we need to confront? Is it fair for Oromos to be made to feel like foreigners in their own country? Why do we dismiss & minimize it? Why do we silence & gaslight Oromos? Why doesn’t this make us angry? 26/
a) not everything is a fabrication; b) the way to fight fabrications isn’t by categorizing everything as a fabrication/dismissing legitimate concerns. It makes you sound as dishonest and driven by unjust motives as those totalizing Oromo “radicals.” 27/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698024183734272?s=20
I agree, but that isn’t all there is to the issue. And I think the adults in the house must be able to see beyond what the spoilers say, unpack the totalized narratives, and look for nuance/truth. 28/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698025303543808?s=20
Let's imagine for a sec problematic Oromo politicians/ activists & their totalizing narratives aren't in the picture. Would you stand up for Oromos’ legitimate grievances? Having that conversation, IMO, is the most effective method for pulling the rug from under the spoilers. 29/
Why are we letting these problematic politicians lead us? Just because they want to blame the Amhara people for Ethiopia’s violent past doesn’t mean that we should refuse to acknowledge painful past/present. We should do the right thing regardless. 30/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698026490613765?s=20
A question: if we were to say that the blame should rest on the culture of violence that we were all responsible in creating and not on any one group, would you be more inclined to examine the past and the lasting pain it has left behind? 31/
The question re: containing contradictions wasn’t specifically directed at you, BTW. It was a question for everyone. In any case, what “poses a bigger threat” to our country is subjective, obvi. I have my own opinions. 32/ https://twitter.com/ethio_style/status/1283698027656511488?s=20
As a descendant of landowning Amharas whose fam has lived in Oromia for generations (my menze grandma lived to see her granddaughter's grandchild), I believe the best way to show concern for the lives of Amharas in Oromia is by showing genuine concern for the lives of Oromos. 33/
I believe the best way to protect Amharas in Oromia is not through the theatrics of condemning this and that, reporting this and that, whenever violence flares up. Nor is it through the use of those violent flare-ups to silence Oromos about their long-standing grievances. 34/
I believe the longterm interests of Amharas in Oromia are best protected by engaging in honest and rigorous conversations about the past, the scars it left behind, and how we can collectively prevent it from happening again. 35/
I don’t know if it will work but I think we should still make an honest effort. Without silencing and gaslighting, without minimizing each other’s pain. 36/
IMO, the bigger threats to Ethiopia are: cultivation of silence, supremacy of ego over everything, hyper-sensitivity to criticisms of the past & of the state, defensiveness, guilt, gaslighting, dismissiveness, generalizations, totalizing narratives, & all their friends. 37/
That said, thank you for your time. 38/
