Otoniya Okot Bitek is a poet in the tradition of the Acholi from northern Uganda.
Acholi poets, painters, singers and dancers bring people together through their art which usually involves social commentary.
“The poet in the Acholi tradition, is not just someone who says the flower is beautiful because it s beautiful, but gathers people to think and talk about whatever it is they re doing and what’s happening around them,” she says. “For me, as an Acholi poet, the poem is the container, the space and opportunity for people to gather in community.”
Okot Bitek began writing when she was very young to win the attention of her father, an internationally recognized poet who was exiled from Uganda when he drew the ire of the government.
The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences is pleased to announce the scholars selected to the 2020-21 Jack and Doris Shadbolt Fellowship in the Humanities Program. The program increases the visibility of the contributions of the humanities and arts to the university community. It also engages the wider community through publicly involved scholarship and creativity.
The Shadbolt Fellows will engage with Metro Vancouver communities through exhibits, performances, artworks, workshops and events that realize the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences’ values of advancing reconciliation; equity, diversity and inclusion; and collaboration.
Join us online at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 27, 2021 to meet the Shadbolt Fellows in a panel discussion moderated by Stephen Collis (Professor, SFU Department of English) and June Scudeler (Assistant Professor, SFU Indigenous Studies). This event is hosted with the support of SFU Public Square. Register on Eventbrite.