Freedom of Storytelling

The First Amendment to our Constitution grants us the freedom of speech, which we gladly practice daily. However, I cannot help wondering if our society allows for complete freedom. A safe space is not always readily available to us for the sharing of our stories or experiences.

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the importance of story telling and finding the time and place to be able to share our stories with others. Last week, I reviewed the show, Logic, Luck, and Love: A Valentines Day Special, put on by SpeakeasyDC. When I raved about it to a co-worker, he told me that he was a taking a class through the organization and his first showcase was coming up. So, on February 22, at Axum Lounge, I attended the SpeakeasyDC Student Showcase.

As each student walked to the microphone, they brought the audience to a different place and turn of events in their lives. While the stories ranged in subjects from, Chinese “massage therapists,” teenage pregnancy, growing up in the most segregated city in the nation, and immigration to the United States; they still all found commonalities in themes, of culture shock, parent-child relationships, childhood memories, and finding home.

As I listened to people’s stories, I had and most likely would never experience a similar situation to many, but taking the time to listen to them I was able to see the person behind the veil of society’s assumptions and with a good storytelling, empathize with them. Beyond that, I realized that though the events of the stories themselves were completely unique, the emotions behind them were similar. No, I had not grown up in the most segregated town in the United States, but I did know the feeling of receiving that love and pride from a mother. And no, I have never traveled to Africa or China, but I certainly know the feeling of culture shock, feeling lost and confused in a strange place.

We all come from very different places and survive through experiences that are distinct. Without a shared experience, a wall is put up between those of us who “get it” and those of us who don’t, and without the understanding, we can never gain any sort of comradery. To break that wall down, we need to be able to tell, listen, and share those stories from our lives. Once we begin to realize that beyond the surface, we have similar emotions and reactions to different events. At the end of the day, we are more alike than we are lead to believe, we simply need to allow for the opportunity to discover.

Note: SpeakeasyDC also offers open-mic nights where any one can tell their story every second Tuesday of the month at Town. Also, check out their new performance – review to come soon – of Mixed, Blended, Shaken, & Stirred: Stories about Today’s American Family, a part of Washington DC’s INTERSECTIONS festival.