When our daughter was teaching in a small, rural community in Maine, she asked the students who in the room was Franco-American. Though many of them had Franco-American last names, her question was met with blank stares.
Remembering her own upbringing, she then asked them to raise their hands if they had a mémère and a pépère or if they ate tourtière at home. Many hands then shot up.
The students may not have recognized that they came from a culture, but they certainly recognized the markers of that culture. Those markers are often subtle and not easily identifiable, but they are part of the children’s everyday, lived way of life.
A culture is much deeper than its stereotypes. But how traditions are recognized, lived and practiced provide a starting point for learning about — and maintaining — that culture.
Learning the history of the culture is also of importance. Understanding the legacy of the presence of the Franco-Americans in Maine offers the entire community a deeper knowledge of the true story of the state.
There is not enough of this learning going on now in Maine. I will be discussing this issue and others related to Franco-American history as part of Exploring Women’s Testimony conference Oct. 8-10 at Colby College in Waterville and University of Maine at Augusta.
It is important that we maintain the Franco-American culture and history in Maine, and support the creation of the new, modern expression of the Franco-American culture.
Culture and history are not static. They are ever-evolving, and the transmission of the culture happens in many ways. Some of the transmission of the culture is done in the communities and much is done in the private lives of the people who are from the culture.
I believe it is important for the transmission of the culture to come from within the culture and have its stamp of authenticity attached. The varying aspects of a culture — the diversity within the Franco-American culture — are critical for the continued expression of a culture that lives in our communities, not just in museums. Each member of the Franco-American culture is on a personal journey of keeping their portion of the lived culture vital and refreshed.
It is vital to the life of the Franco-American culture that it is passed on to the next generation. It is necessary that the young Franco-Americans in Maine, like those students in my daughter’s class, are culturally aware and knowledgeable about their traditions and history.
They should become aware and knowledgeable of the history, contributions, stories, myths, legends and possibly the language, although having full access to the language is not necessary. This is generational work to be done on the personal and private level, but also in public.
The perceptions and honoring of the culture and history constitute a matter of pride in that aspect of our modern lives. The who, what, where, when, and how are as varied as there are individuals in the culture, which gives the particular spice and flavor to the lived culture in the community.
Franco-American culture and history is a vital and viable entity in Maine. But to guarantee that it stays that way, it is important to create new and exciting versions of the culture through modern-day expressions. Artists, writers, musicians, and many others, both in the older and younger generations, create those new versions. They come into their own version of the Franco-American culture, and by combining their creativities with the traditional aspects of the culture, they help define what it will be for future generations.
By keeping alive the old traditions and history and fusing it with something new, they keep the culture alive, and show how it is something real and lived, not just words in a history book. It shows that the time and effort it takes to learn about one’s culture is worthwhile, and it keeps the culture alive, and moving toward the future.
Rhea Côté Robbins is a Franco-American, a native of Waterville, and the author of “down the Plains.” She is presenting in a panel at 2 p.m. on Oct. 10 at Colby College. For more on the conference, go to hhrcmaine.org/exploring-womens-testimony/.
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