This creative activity uses co-operative storytelling to explore the images we have about people from other cultures and social groups.

Have you ever tried to create a story with 10 people or more? Now is your opportunity to try.
 

Issues addressed

• Stereotypes
• The limits of our knowledge of other cultural groups.

Aims

• To let participants reflect on their own levels of ethnocentrism
• To be aware of how the images we have of others conditions our expectations of them

Preparation / Materials

• A ball; paper and pen for the observer; flip chart and marker pen
• Chairs (optional)

Instructions

1. Ask people to sit in a circle.
2. Ask one of them to be an observer. Their task is to sit outside the circle, listen carefully and write down the story which is going to be created.
3. Explain to the rest of the group that together they are going to create a co-operative story. For this they are going to use a ball.
4. Then say: “This is the story of Antonio, a young man from Madrid.” Then pass the ball to a member of the group and invite them to continue with the next one or two sentences, and to then pass the ball to someone else.
5. Continue in this way so that the story is built co-operatively.
6. After 10 or 12 turns, ask for the ball and thank the participants for the story. Then say: “We are now going to tell a new story, the story of Ali, a Moroccan boy.” Pass the ball back to someone in the circle and ask them to start telling Ali’s story.
7. Bring the activity to an end after about 10 or 12 turns.

Debriefing and evaluation

Ask the observer to read the notes they took about the stories and write the main points on the flip chart.

• How easy or difficult was it to create a story for Antonio? Why?
• How easy or difficult was it to create a story for Ali? Why?
• In what ways was the content of the two stories similar and in what ways was it different? What sort of detail did you include in the two stories?
• Did everyone have similar images of life in Spain and in Morocco? Why? Why not?
• What ideas, images and information did you base your stories on? Were the images realistic and valid?
• Where did you get these images and information? From the mainstream news media? From social media? From personal experience?
• To what extent do your own values and cultural outlook influence your expectations of others? How much of yourself do you project onto others?
• What are the consequences of seeing “others” through our own cultural glasses? Can you give some examples of things people say about “the others”? Do these tend to be complementary or condemnatory?
• What effect does being a target of discrimination have on “the other”?
• How aware are you of your own tendency to see “others” through your own cultural glasses? How good are you at accepting that your own culture is just one of several complex world views?
• Does learning about and or meeting “others” tend to change attitudes? Why? Why not?
• What can you do to be better at seeing “others” without your cultural glasses?

Tips for the facilitators

It is best if the story is made spontaneously and with a fast rhythm, in which case the observer may have difficulty in noting everything down. The problem may be solved by having a second observer or by recording the story on a tape.

It is important that the activity is presented simply as the creation of a co-operative story.

It is likely that the stories will include points about the two boys’ family relationships and daily lives, and thus raise issues about inequalities of opportunity. Acknowledge that these are valid points which the group can look at another time and explain that the focus of this activity is on the images participants have of people of different nationality or culture, where we get those images from, and also how open they are to, and how comfortable they are with cultural difference.

The names of the characters will lead the group to the theme you want to explore so feel free to change them. As presented, the idea is to help people recognise how little they actually know about people who live in other countries. If necessary, you should therefore change Antonio’s name to one that resonates with the participants’ own reality and choose an “Ali” from another, but not too distant country.

If, for instance, you want to do some work around immigrants, you should choose names traditionally associated with the majority and immigrants, and choose areas of your own city where the two groups primarily live. It is up to you to set the scene with the first sentence, for instance, “This is the story of Frank, a young homosexual...” or “This is the story of Maria who is physically disabled…”.

The activity also works well with monocultural minority groups when it may develop into a discussion about barriers to getting to know those of the majority culture.

Variations

1. Divide the group into two sub-groups and ask each group to work on only one of the stories. Afterwards, compare the two. This variation has the advantage that the participants do not suspect that the stories are to be compared.
2. Form two sub-groups and ask each group to draw or write the biography, or an important moment in the life of one of the characters in the story. Afterwards compare the two biographies or stories.

Suggestions for follow-up

Take action: Brainstorm ways in which you can expose yourself to others who are different. For instance, volunteer with a club for immigrants, read more widely, especially about foreign news, or join a Meetup group.

Move on to another activity: If you like stories and enjoy surprises then try ‘Tales of the World’'.