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Hi. My name is Siobhan, and I'm a, uh, I'm from American Samo. I'm a delegate from American Samoa, and I am presenting at the conference. I'm one of the presenter, and I'll be talking about my paper on, uh, polari and language. Polari is a gay language from that, uh, originated from, uh, UK. But, um, it's it from the language in the 16 hundreds. Yes, very interesting to know that, um, there was [00:00:30] there is a gay language, which it was documented by Paul Paul Baker. But, um, what's more interesting to us from the Pacific, especially from from Samoa, is that we've never talked, but we adopt the same morphology of developing this homosexual language. It's amazing. It's amazing to find out how homosexuals of the world, uh, would come to have this language that is [00:01:00] that has similarities. And that's what my paper is about. Can can you give me some examples? Oh, of course. Um, the word dolly is a polari word. And using it, um, from the doll, you know, appreciating the doll. Another mythology, that is very, um uh, common in both the, um in both the and the, uh and language is backslang [00:01:30] So I and, uh are, um, the words for face and hair. And in Samoa, it's popular to speak our tongue backwards in the word which is thing, and we say it. So we it was interesting to find out that this, uh, polari language is has similarities to the language, which is for homosexuals [00:02:00] of Samoa. The reason that I wanted to talk about this slang it's because of its usage. In those days, polari was used as a coded language, a secret language to code. The words were coded to protect homosexuals in the military, protect them from the public. As you know, that in the UK before the 19 sixties, um before they [00:02:30] they had allowed homosexual homosexual acts in in UK it was they were not allowed. And they would have to create this language, uh, to, uh, protect them and be secret, secretive of their sexuality as gays. Uh, for American Samoa, it was it was similar in the sense where, uh, we would use the language to, uh, disguise our conversations with, um with each other as we talk [00:03:00] about our nights with, uh, men of status. Uh, that that that is status in culture and in, um, in culture and in poli politics. So, um, I don't know why we would have to go through the extent of having such a language, uh, to disguise our conversations. And, um, but to live, uh, in a in a world that you know it it's accepted. [00:03:30] So that that's the point where I would like to point out when I do my presentation. Is the language still used today for American? Yes. Um, now, the students of elementary and high school are talking at even heterosexual people. Um, I'm afraid that it might replace the for the, uh, informal, uh, language of Samoa. I'm afraid of that. So this paper also serves as an awareness to, um [00:04:00] uh to the, uh, new generation and the people that are coming by that are, you know, people of American Samoa to understand that the origin of the, uh of the language as well as its purpose that way that they would not replace the, uh, the informal language or the casual language for polari. I know that when, um in the sixties, they, uh, homosexuality was allowed. Then the language started to die down a little [00:04:30] although it is still used, you can Google polari as in POLAR I and you will see its usage on, um uh on the YouTube because there was a radio programme called around the horn and it was they were using that that that was the language that they were using in around the horn in the UK. So it's Yeah, it's it's used and I think it It's history and for for the for the gay community as well as and it's it's it's [00:05:00] it's an, uh, the language, I would think as as it as as an heirloom that we have to keep and to pass on. Generally speaking, what are the, um, rights, like now in with, uh, American for, um, American Samoa is under the United States flag. And you know, when you are a territory of the United States, it comes with freedom and equality, but that we cannot, uh, rule out the fact that we [00:05:30] are from the Pacific and American Samoa is the only territory of the United States in, uh, Polynesia and and, um, we identify with our sisters from, uh, the Independent Samoa and all the, uh, the the and all the hardship of life as a that they see, although that we're from from American Samoa [00:06:00] and the territory of the United States. But we always We also see, uh, mistreatment. Um uh, mockery. Um, we see that in in in American Samoa, even though that it's a territory of the United States. These things are are are are visible, uh, for us in American Samoa, and we have to, um we have to treat it in in some in some respect to, um, secure [00:06:30] ourselves and maintain our protection, other support groups or other networks. Uh, yes, we have the association, uh, for association called, um, so it's an acronym from, um, Society of in American Samoa. And using acronym with names is another, uh, morphology in, uh, gay language A lot. They use that a lot. [00:07:00] And, um, the this organisation, uh, we work very closely with home with home of the elderly, uh, convalescent homes with the Red Cross. We do a lot of, uh, donations to Red Cross to, um, home of the elderly in American Samoa, as well as, uh, in Independent Samoa. There is networking between two associations, um, Sofia's and which is association [00:07:30] Yes, networking in in government issues that pertaining to education. Because this is the field where most are are are in as well as issues that pertains to us as if we're looking ahead 30 years and somebody is listening to this in 30 years time. Is there something that you would say to them? I would like to tell them that is an identity. And I would [00:08:00] like for them to know their identity as they would know their heart, because in that you would know your place in your family, in your government, in your island and in the world.
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