Coolies VRP 11-01 PDF

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Video Reaction Paper - Coolies: How Britain re-invented slavery The documentary, Coolies: How Britain re-invented slavery directed by Deep Shagal reveals the migration and recruitment of Indians as indentured labourers by the British Empire in the early 1800’s. This film was made to understand the foundation of the indentured labour system and how it led Indians to populate countries all over the world, not only the people but their cultures, traditions and beliefs as seen in today’s time period. The characters presented in this film include the British Empire, Mahatma Gandhi and his great – granddaughter Uma Dhupelia-Mesthrie and David Dabydeen whose great-grandfather was a ‘coolie’ in Guyana. svideomay have been created by British Broadcasting Corporation to make the peopleawareofthe sacrifices that the Indentured labourers had made while strengtheningthefoundationsofa  country and to remind people of a sad and forgotten part of history which had occurredl ess thantwocenturiesago. hisvideomay have been created by British Broadcasting Corporation to make the peopleawareofthe sacrifices that the Indentured labourers had made while strengtheningthefoundationsofa  country and to remind people of a sad and forgotten part of history which had occurredl ess thantwocenturiesago hisvideomay have been created by British Broadcasting Corporation to make the peopleawareofthe sacrifices that the Indentured labourers had made while strengtheningthefoundationsofa  country and to remind people of a sad and forgotten part of history which had occurredl ess thantwocenturies The soundtrack played in the film enhanced my emotions. It created an atmosphere of ‘empathy’ and the ‘longing for freedom’ – it transported my thoughts into visualized images where I was putting myself into their shoes, thinking “what would I have done?”, “would I have survived such chained system?”. During the time spent watching this film, I was filled with feelings of pure sadness and empathy as I watch the indentured labourers struggle for freedom. The story of a 90 year old surviving witness of the indentured system in Guyana, South America brought upon great sorrow within me. She was born into the system and started working as a “coolie” at the early age of 3. She further explained the fact that she has no descendants as all of her six children passed away during the time of the indentured system. As a first-time mother, I cannot possibly imagine the agony of losing all six children let alone one. I felt immense despair as tears start to swell up but also felt proud of how strong she made it through in spite of all the heartache she went through.

Towards the completion of this film, I learned three significant substances. Firstly, the importance of having leadership skills in order stand up to oppressive systems. This is shown in the significant role Mahatma Ghandi played, who started off as a middle – class lawyer, engaged a nonviolent resistance called the “Passive Resistance” which later on successfully ended the brutal indentured labour system. Another important theme also learned from this film, is the foundation of how Indians descendants spread geographically around the world today. Knowing the background and history of one’s culture is essential in knowing one’s identity and their ancestry. The last significant matter that I have learned is to live life at its fullest. A life without a cause is life without effect. Having to witness the brutal way our ancestors lived, we should live in content as it is because of our ancestor’s struggles and hard work, we live in a peaceful and luxurious life. I absolutely recommend this documentary so to raise awareness about the history of Indian Indentured labour as I feel that till this day Indian Indentured labour is still not fully recognized....