Last meeting, I attempted to take notes about what I understood of our meeting, held only in Mandinka. This is what I wrote.
Today, _________________ and ____________________ will come. Modou ___ go _____. Football is happening _____________________________________________________________________. Basse is ______________________________________ and water __________________________ tomorrow. We want _________________ and _____________________ and ___________________ and maybe _______________. Teachers _________________________ master ________________________ field now. It’s good. Praise Allah.
After this failure, I quit and waited for my translator to help me. A fellow member translated the following information to me, after probably about a fifteen minute discussion.
Ref of the matches/Secretary of the Committee (R/S): The Medina team is demanding that the Farato team be punished. They say that they hired a marabou (a village holy man) to put a curse of the refs so that Farato would win the game.
President of the Committee (P): What? There’s no way to prove black magic. Let’s write a letter to medina, telling them we can’t prosecute for what we can’t prove. Let’s also write a letter to Farato, explaining that black magic cannot be used. Secretary, will you write the letter?
R/S: I don’t want to write the letter.
P: You have to. You’re the secretary.
R/S: Yeah, but last game… I don’t know. I felt strange…
P: What do you mean?
R/S: My head felt strange… I felt unconscious.
*The whole crowd shares meaningful glances, acknowledging the work of black magic.
R/S: I don’t want to write the letter.
P: Ok. We won’t write a letter.
Come on, P or R/S, man up (assuming they are males; if not, woman up!) and write the letter! And put it on Facebook as well. Curious minds in the West (and elsewhere) want to read it. Praise Free Expression!
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