Ayat Mohammed Salih

“This past and ongoing Sudanese Revolution forced the diaspora to question their identity, their politics and the relation between the two in terms of their location. This 2019 audio feature of Mathani Ahmed’s narrative follows different locations, from Khartoum to Toronto to Queen’s Park, and expresses the political journey diaspora and otherwise go through when deciding who they are as people in this world. Our passion and investment in politics is tied to who, what and where we are. Omer Elbashir’s tyranny over the Sudanese people was not the only oppression faced, instead it was coupled with the newly elected Ford government. This production portrays a perspective that holds space within Sudanese and Canadian activism and political identity, and how the two can intertwine. The anniversary to the beginning of the Sudanese revolution has come and gone, and during this time I think this production does an interesting job of reflecting on how certain events can re-evaluate our political placements. Through this interview with Mathani Ahmed, we know the lines between the politics and the personal are forced constructions through a colonial mindset.”

Ayat Salih is a Sudanese artist and Media Production student, currently completing her undergraduate degree at Ryerson University. She has experience in different creative and community building projects such as the Black Liberation Collective at Ryerson, Leftea Time podcast, Crafting Sapphic Spaces toolkit, The Junction radio show, and various illustration pieces. Through visual art and audio production, she explores her socio-political opinions and viewpoints.