Aside from world-class performances, the underlying mission of last weekend’s Dublin International Gospel Music Festival was to promote multicultural understanding and dialogue within the diverse Irish community.
On the morning of 24 September, people flocked to Liberty Hall to learn about online marketing and promotion, digital voice production and receive singing tips.
Other participants joined in on the discussion of faith, race and integration in Ireland – complicated, lengthy issues that several leaders of migrant communities and the gospel music world did not shy away from.
In the discussion, participants began to tackle the question of how individuals can not only tolerate other faiths, but also understand and embrace them.
“Differences are magnificent, but difference always runs a risk of being treated as an outcast. The more different a community is the greater the risk and the more difficult it is to integrate with the wider community,” said Sheikh Shaheed Satardien, president of the Muslim Council of Ireland and director of the Intercultural Peace Centre.
“We must teach, by experience, our religions and customs to the wider community, not only on the basis of conversion or proselytising, but on the basis of achieving a greater understanding.”
He added: “Let us remember that harmony flows from understanding and not from ignorance, which causes apprehension.”
Faith often has a negative connotation because it’s frequently associated with conflict and religious extremism, said Philip McKinley of the Discovery Gospel Choir. Meanwhile, religious extremism and ignorance to other cultures is why many people deny their faith, said Rev Obinna C Ulogwara, Church of Ireland chaplain of the international community.
The main problem is that individuals use faith as a means of dominating other people, said Sheikh Mohiuddin Ahmed, president of the Irish National Minority Council and chair of the discussion.
However, Sheikh Satardien said that religion is not the culprit, but rather people’s interpretation and manipulation of it, emphasising that an individual’s beliefs are not a part of the religion itself.
“We have more similarities than differences, and we all have to respect each other,” he said. “No religious book says one should be vindictive.”
Faith could impact one’s secular work life – such as praying four times a day, as Muslims are expected to do – but one cannot be rigid about their practices and must be willing to make accommodations, said Shehab Uddin, executive member of the Bangladeshi Association of Ireland.
“Religion is not an obstacle in itself, but many people are not mentally prepared to accept people of other faiths,” added Sheikh Satardien.
As for racism in Ireland, many of the participants believed it was minimal compared to other European countries. However, many participants agreed with Sheikh Satardien’s sentiments that immigrants are scapegoats of the current socio-economic crisis in Ireland. He said that when the ‘Celtic Tiger’ died, discrimination toward mig-rants increased.
Sheikh Satardien is a native of South Africa and experienced the Apartheid system first-hand. From his experience, he said racism can only be fought by those who have experienced it. But until the immigrant community comes together and forms an alliance, the issue will not be combatted efficiently, he said.
Civil society has to do the majority of the work to end discrimination, not the Government, he added.
This do-it-yourself attitude was a common theme among all of the workshops. Gospel singer Muyiwa of Muyiwa and Riversongz told participants in the singing and voice training workshop that they should not wait for a record deal to get their career started, and instead release an album on their own.
Metro Éireann columnist Marcin Kulik of MK Design Studio led the workshop on online marketing and promotion for gospel musicians, providing tips on how they can gain more of a following.
For the digital music production workshop, the members of 3rd World Records demonstrated how to make the most out of minimal equipment.
