Under the evocative title "Literary Ginger and the Sovereignty of Connection and Word," a major event took place in Montreal, conceptualized as a think tank exploring the new connections between diaspora, sovereignty, and creation. In his opening address, Professor Emeritus Khadiyatoulah Fall (University of Quebec at Chicoutimi) praised the richness and symbolic subtlety of this gathering.

Professor Fall first highlighted the symbolic power of the title: "Bringing together, under the banner of Literary Ginger, the notions of diaspora, sovereignty and the word, is to lay the foundations for a demanding reflection on the new forms of connection, creation and intellectual responsibility..."

Ginger itself is perceived as a "poetics of life": a root that "burns and heals, that circulates without being lost, that connects lands and memories." For the speaker, diaspora is no longer a melancholic exile, but a "power for interpreting the world" and a "philosophy of connection."

Boubacar Boris Diop: The Sovereignty of Meaning

The choice of writer Boubacar Boris Diop as the central figure, as well as that of Montreal as the inaugural setting, gives the event a "singular significance".

Khadiyatoulah Fall emphasized the work of Boris Diop, who embodies the "sovereignty of meaning" by engaging in a dialogue between memory and lucidity.

The act of writing in Wolof is not a retreat, but an act of "intellectual and moral sovereignty." It invents a sovereignty of meaning by refusing to allow "African speech to be assigned, translated, or neutralized."

According to the professor, Boris Diop demonstrates that true sovereignty resides neither in territory nor in institution, but in the "mastery of the word".

Montreal: Laboratory of Shared Sovereignty

Montreal is presented as a "laboratory city of diversity" and an ideal setting for this type of reflection. The recent event of the election of the first mayor from an immigrant background to head Canada's largest French-speaking metropolis is described as "highly symbolic": "It speaks to the maturity of a society that no longer fears plurality, but embraces it as a source of democratic energy."

The city embodies Paul Ricœur's "linguistic hospitality" and sees sovereignty become "relational and networked", expressed in knowledge, networks and above all speech.

A tribute to the "Making of Meaning"

Professor Fall also paid a heartfelt tribute to Gorgui Wade Ndoye, founder of Gingembre Littéraire and "a son of Rufisque like myself." "Gorgui is not just an event organizer: he is a conduit of meaning, a bridge-builder, a guardian of humanity."

In conclusion, the event serves as a reminder that "true sovereignty no longer lies in enclosure, but in relationship." The diaspora is described as the "ginger of the world": "a burning root, a memory in motion, a remedy against oblivion."