Last night I went to a great Cowboys Fringants show at the Elysée Montmartre. A little blast from home.. though there weren’t exactly many Canadian flags in sight.

Most of you are probably familiar with many Québecois’ ill-fated struggle for independence from Canada. As a friend put it last night, “I totally understand why they want to leave, but at the same time I really hope they stay.” That pretty much sums up my feelings on the matter, especially as (one of the few) English Canadians who can speak French well. Either way, after two referendum losses it doesn’t look like Canada is going to lose Québec any time soon. Tant mieux…

The Igbo people of the Biafran region in south-eastern Nigeria also had a hard go at separation, but they didn’t exactly get the benefit of referendums and peaceful dialog. Instead, the Biafran war for independence was one of the more gruesome conflicts in recent African history.

Biafra actually existed as a self-proclaimed independent republic for about three years, from 1967 until 1970. It never got officially recognized by enough countries, however, and Nigeria had the big-guy backing of the UK and the Soviet Union.

Nigeria eventually reclaimed the territory by blocking all access to supplies, notably food. Thousands (maybe millions – no one really knows) died as a result of the blockade and the Biafrans were forced into surrender.

It may seem a bit extreme to do a musical pairing of Igbo and Quebecois music, but the two cultures share a lot in common: a history of feeling repressed by a very culturally different majority and an ongoing, low-level fight for independence.

I don’t know the name of the Oriental Brothers track. Can anyone identify it?

Oriental Brothers – Unknown
Les Cowboys Fringants – Les Etoiles Filantes