Ghettoisation in a multilateral world
Maybe ghettoisation is too strong a term to use with reference to the Grammys creating a new category for their 2027 award selection in music. But one really doesn’t know how else to describe the decision of the Recording Academy that takes a call on the kind of awards to be given each year. Categorisation by music genre like Jazz and folk music is acceptable as it indicates different kinds of music. But to announce a new Asian category is to pigeonhole artists by region and language, whereas music is a universal language that connects music lovers across race, religion, ethnicity, language, faith and geography.
Following the global success and popularity of their new album Arirang, the seven-member BTS, the music group from South Korea loved by millions, has said: “We have decided not to enter the Grammys this year; i hope that music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.” Curiously, most of the lyrics in the Arirang album are in English, with a smattering of Korean. So how would one box it as – English or Korean? Such questions are really irrelevant as music is in itself a universal language, something one experiences and loves rather than understands. The same goes for any kind of art, like painting, where the experience itself counts, not the language or region. So why should the Grammys isolate or restrict a globally popular music group to a specific region or culture?
The Grammys are just one aspect. At the other end of the spectrum, we have what are called senior living communities, promoted by builders who promise ‘luxurious retirement homes’ for the elderly, with all kinds of facilities thrown in like swimming pools, tennis courts, health food, and access to medical services. Sounds great, especially if your children live abroad, are unlikely to return, and you have no interest in relocating to another country at this stage in your life. But these housing facilities are usually at a considerable distance from any other town or city. There is little chance of the inmates getting to mingle with anyone else other than those who live in that segregated community.
Contrast this with a new trend in senior living in some European countries, like Netherlands, where inter-generational housing is promoted. Young university students are encouraged to live with the elderly as flatmates, free of charge or at low cost. There is a mingling of young and old; one enjoys the company of the other, sharing interests and seniors get to learn new things while the young benefit from the seniors’ wisdom. The elderly no longer feel lonely or isolated; they enjoy social interaction with young and old. And students no longer have to fear high accommodation costs or pine for their families. Rather than cut off a section of people from the mainstream, elders get to enjoy youthful company; young students benefit from housing and learn from experienced elders in a home-like atmosphere.
We live in an inextricably interconnected world. The Buddhists call it Pratityasamutpada – the theory of dependent origination. Our lives are interwoven with all other beings, so why attempt to segregate, categorise and isolate? As Thich Nhat Hanh puts it, we must learn to ‘inter-be’ instead of getting disconnected and ghettoised.
