Participating in the Death Café was one of the most eye opening experience I have had thus far in a post-secondary course. Before attending this event, I did not realize how little we as a society speak about death. So having this organized experience to discuss this topic exclusively, brought this into perspective. At first I have to admit I was a bit skeptical, as I am not usually one to speak about such personal matters with complete strangers, but I think this is what really made the event powerful. Through speaking to my group, I really enjoyed hearing everyone’s perspectives and feelings towards certain topics. Especially because our group was made up of such different religions, beliefs and values.

The prompts provided by the moderators were what really helped to break the ice and keep the conversation moving forward. The question that really stuck with me was “Are there representations of death and dying that are absent or missed in media representation?”. My group and I discussed this topic for quite a while, touching on points such as the recent gun violence and school shootings in the United States, as well as the homeless. As students focusing on media, this prompt made us critically analyze what was being missed regarding death in media, which is a topic that is rarely spoken about in day to day life. Media tends to focus on large issues and what is exciting for their audience. Therefore, those who are losing a voice through media is the homeless, which relates back to other minorities such as the disabled and people of colour.

Media has begun to portray the death of such human beings as being glamorized or for the better in some circumstances. As Eliza Chandler’s mentions in her piece, “it is easier to imagine the end of a life than to imagine a life with disability” (n.d.). In other words, why make these individuals suffer any longer? It is seen by the majority that death of such minorities is relinquishing them of their misery. It is important for society to realize pitying those living with a disability, or as a visible minority, is not a proper feeling to have towards these human beings. They are just as important and valuable as the rest of society.

Overall, I felt that attending and participating in the Death Café was very beneficial. After hearing the crowd’s experiences with the topics and the exercise in general, I realized how important it is to talk such topics as this.

References

Chandler, E., & Ignagni, E. (n.d.). Strange beauty: Aesthetic possibilities of sustaining disability into the future. Unpublished manuscript under review.