Not a single word or words stringed together will ever be able to bring any sense of comfort to the family and friends reeling from pain after learning that they have lost loved ones in the Mahdia dorm fire. Not a single social media status, vigil, thought or prayer will fill that void created by something that was by all means preventable. I can say I feel anguish like so many others, but what I also feel is anger, hopelessness, despair and guilt.
Anger because dorm and school fires or fires at state agencies aren’t new, yet we find ourselves here time and time again: Waramadong Secondary School (2008) fire which claimed the lives of 3 students, Bartica Secondary School dorm fire (2007) which saw no loss of life but completely destroyed the school and more recently 2016 at the Children’s Drop-in Centre which saw the loss of life of two brothers within state care.
Hopelessness because we never seem to learn or want to be honest about how our general culture allows for such tragedies.
Despair because we never seem to humanise certain groups of people particularly our Indigenous people until chaos ensues.
Guilt because we all have, myself included, engaged in practices that don’t allow for a just society. No matter how small or insignificant it may seem like paying for speedy service to have passports renewed. Such behaviour is merely just a peek into a chaotic society doing backflips as it relates to corruption and protocol.
Mahdia, like so many other school and dorm fires, happened not only because there is inadequate fire prevention equipment and systems in place, but also because we have become disintegrated as a society. Unable to listen, forcibly instructing while comfortably sitting in our privileged spaces pronouncing on the lives of people we know nothing about and doing what we consider to be ‘best for them’. Sometimes only showing up when we want to maximise our perception of how we might be viewed in society’s eyes.
I can’t stop thinking of the prison-like facility those young children were housed in. The panic and fear in their little eyes as they tried to respond as best as they could. I can’t imagine how agonising it must have felt to be locked up like a caged animal or to escape and possibly find yourself riddled with survivor’s guilt. There are simply no words, no amount of care packages that could fix this heart wrenching catastrophe that we are all responsible for.
What I can say though, is that I am sorry it took a tragedy of this magnitude for us to start spotlighting issues that have hampered children’s well-being even though many of us still fail to connect the dots. It shouldn’t have taken us this long. This was and is callous. I am sorry for all the ways we consciously and unconsciously speak for children assuming that they have no agency. While I know sorry will not ease pain by any means, what I can promise is to constantly pursue change and I will implore others to do the same. Change must be inclusive and centred around the needs of those to whom it applies. We must all be active as citizens, listen without judgement and advocate where necessary. Being silent bystanders brings nothing but pain and we have seen what that pain has wrought.
