The excitement continues

Last Friday’s World Cup opening game between Bafana Bafana and Mexico ushered in a new level of football hysteria here in Cape Town.  In anticipation of the 4pm game, streets were full of supporters in green and yellow, and crowds in bars spilled out of the entrances.  Long Street, the main bar strip in downtown Cape Town, was so crowded that every single bar closed their doors and stationed bouncers at the entrances in order to stop more zealous fans from entering.  Luckily, with a horde of people pushing up against me at the doors of Long Street Café, I was able to persuade the door man to let me in just in time for the singing of the South African national anthem.

The vuvuzela-blowing, singing, and chanting that had filled the streets all day continued throughout the match, and the enthusiasm in the air was incredible.  With the home team advantage and the support of a nation behind them, Bafana Bafana notched the first goal of the game, but Mexico answered later in the second half, ending the game in a 1-1 draw.  For a squad widely dismissed as one of the worst teams in the tournament, South Africa proved that they did indeed belong on the World Cup pitch.

Since Friday’s game, what I have been up to can be described in two words—football and the exhibition.  On Saturday, the other Duke students and I headed into to Museum to help the exhibitions staff with installation.  Later on in the day, we walked to the FIFA Fan Park in front of City Hall—which is less than a block away from the museum—to watch the US team take on England.  Unsurprisingly, USA fans were greatly outnumbered by English supporters dressed in red and white and waving their flag.  After Steven Gerrard’s early goal, it seemed like it would be a lopsided game, but with tough play and a lucky break from the English goaltender, the US pulled away with a 1-1 tie.  Needless to say, the few US fans in the viewing area were celebrating when the ref blew the final whistle.

Work on Monday flew by.  Although things were hectic preparing the exhibit for the opening the following night, my mind was focused on the Italy-Paraguay game that I would be attending that evening at Cape Town Stadium.  The experience lived up to my expectations.  It’s been a lot of fun watching the soccer games on TV, but actually being there in the stadium—experiencing the sights, sounds, and emotions first-hand—was incredible.

Since most of the roads near the stadium were closed and traffic was totally clogged downtown, we decided simply to walk to the game instead of taking a taxi.  It seemed like a good decision as we weaved through streets jammed packed with commuters driving home and tour buses and taxis dropping off fans at the game.  But with the glowing Cape Town Stadium in sight about a kilometer ahead, the clouds opened up and unleashed a torrential downpour of rain mixed with hail.  Everyone walking to the stadium got drenched—especially because FIFA bans umbrellas from the stadium, so no one had one on them.  The rain began to let up as we went through security, headed inside the stadium, and made our way to our incredibly positioned seats at midfield, under the stadium’s roof.

The game itself was a lot of fun.  We were surrounded mostly by Italy fans (I was cheering for Paraguay, the underdogs), but luckily no one nearby was blowing a vuvuzela (they are ridiculously loud and equally annoying in person).  Paraguay scored first near the end of the first half, unleashing a wave of excitement from the few Paraguayan supporters in the crowd.  Unfortunately, Italy managed to answer in the second half with a goal off of a corner kick.  Overall, I really enjoyed the experience.  The soccer was entertaining, but the most exciting part of the game was when everyone in the crowd did the wave (and it lasted for three laps around the stadium!).

Tuesday was the day I had been working toward since my first day back at the museum three weeks ago.  All day we swept, polished, mopped, and ran around the exhibit hall making sure that everything was in order.  By the time 6pm rolled around and guests began to arrive for the Offsides exhibit opening, we were finished, and the exhibition looked awesome.  After speeches from the British High Commissioner in South Africa (the exhibition was partly funded by the British Council), Bonita, the director of the District Six Museum, and Tina, the head of the Museum’s Exhibition Department, a vuvuzela was blown to mark the exhibit’s official opening.  The evening was particularly rewarding to see the guests enjoy all off the hard work we have put in.  And the hors d’oeuvres were delicious.

Wednesday—Youth Day—was a public holiday in South Africa commemorating the June 16, 1976 student uprising in the Soweto township outside of Johannesburg.  Sadly, instead of enjoying the day off, I found myself back at the Museum helping out with their annual Youth Day public program.  This year, many of the former residents of District Six gathered to visit the newly opened Offsides exhibition.  After serving the guests tea and coffee (it still amuses me how intense South Africans are about their tea—one woman rejected a cup I served to her because it was rooibos tea and not the regular Ceylon tea variety), museum officials gave a near repeat of their speeches from the night before.

Unsurprising to me, however, the program seemed to devolve as the day progressed.  Upon entering, each of the guests was given a different color circle to divide them into three groups.  The new exhibition is a bit small, so not everyone could visit at once.  As soon as the larger group was divided, things fell apart.  The guests—many of whom are in their late 60s and 70s—did not listen to instructions.  Instead of cooperating with the rotations that were planned, they just went wherever they wanted.  I couldn’t help but laugh on the inside while all this was happening.  Last year’s Youth Day celebration was similarly thwarted by rogue guests, so it all came quite expectedly.

I’ll post back at the end of the weekend with more about this past week.  I wanted to get this up ASAP since I have been bad about updating the blog.

Freedom and Fatigue

Wednesday at the District Six Museum, several of the youth organizations affiliated with the museum held a day of film screening centered around the power of youth. This week was the beginning of winter break for high schools (it’s weird to think about how everything is reversed here!), so lots of young people were able to attend.

After a few short film screenings and workshops in the morning, the afternoon schedule had the students watching a documentary about the life of Rosa Parks and the larger civil rights movement her activism inspired. Although it was a bit long, I found the film to be incredibly powerful, as it demonstrated the courage and persistence of Ms. Parks and the participants of the Montgomery Bus Boycotts. It was a very interesting moment to be in the middle of South Africa watching a film about the history of my own country. Talking about, researching, and thinking about apartheid while in South Africa, it is easy to forget about the fact that similar racial and economic discrimination existed (and, perhaps, continues to exist) in the US.

The discussion that followed the film, led by one of my Duke professors (Bob Korstad), was especially powerful, and it illustrated both the challenges and opportunities existing in South Africa today. This past weekend, Bob, Jabulani (the professor from Pietermaritzburg’s University of KwaZulu-Natal), and I had a conversation about how much progress South Africa still has to go. In many ways, the achievement of political freedom in 1994 was only the beginning of the end of apartheid since so many economic, educational, and health inequalities stand in the way of total and complete realization of freedom. And unfortunately, due to corruption and the spoils of patronage, it appears as if the self-serving nature of political parties, including the ANC, will not be able to deliver equality. Instead, it can only be achieved by an extra-political organization composed of everyday South Africans actively participating in their democracy and demanding their rights.

Much to my surprise, many of the students after watching the documentary, made incisive observations similar to what Bob, Jabulani, and I discussed. They incisively recognized that so much progress remains ahead of them and that it will be up to their generation to continue the march to freedom.

While the conversation demonstrated the opportunities and hope for the future, it also featured a phenomenon far-too present in society. The success of the anti-apartheid movement was a testament to the bravery and selflessness of so many South Africans who sacrificed their livelihoods and personal well being for the sake of something larger than themselves. The struggle was long, difficult, and thankless, and they deserve endless gratitude and appreciation from the “freedom generation,” the young people today born into a democratic South Africa.

During the dialogue the other day, many of the youth program leaders, who are mostly middle aged, began speaking about their involvement with the movement, elaborating on the sacrifices they made and emphasizing the difficulties they encountered. But what were supposed to be (I think, at least) inspirational anecdotes and speeches turned more into preaching. The adults, it seemed to me, were talking down to the young people about how hard they had it and how lazy the youth today are—a prime example of the whole “back in my day, we walked to school uphill…both ways.”

It is often said that South Africa suffers from a syndrome known as “struggle fatigue,” basically that the country can’t get past its past. I never fully understood what that term meant. The past is important. It’s integral to moving forward and achieving true freedom in the coming generations. However, as I witnessed the other afternoon, it can get to be too much.

Does endless fixation on the past only generate malaise and fatigue? Do former activists need to take the backseat and allow the next generation of leaders to emerge? But is this next generation ready to lead and ready to sacrifice?

For South Africa today, the challenges and uncertainties are seemingly endless.

Almost Half Way There

It’s hard to believe that it is already Wednesday night, that I have been gone for over four weeks, and that I only have about five weeks left. Despite the fact that my time is speeding by, I am making the most of the summer and trying to get a lot accomplished work-wise. This past weekend, I went with 9 of my housemates along the scenic Garden Route, a section of highway that runs along the southwest coast of the country. After a beautiful drive with rolling green hills and an impromptu stop at a delicious and free-flowing winery along the way, we made it to the Garden Route Game Lodge for a game drive. Although I went on a real safari last summer, it was still cool to visit a game preserve and see elephants, lions, cheetahs, and giraffes in their natural habitat….plus the dinner buffet was pretty delicious!!

Sunday, we continued along the Garden Route passing by rocky coastlines and bays on our way to the Bloukrans Bridge, the site of the world’s highest bungee jump. Some of my friends decided to make the 200+ meter plunge, but I decided to reduce the damage to my wallet and ensure my continued existence by opting to zipline across the bridge instead of jumping. It still provided me with some incredible views of the canyon that the bridge traverses. After jumping, we piled into the small car (5 of us) and made the long 6 hour drive back to Cape Town.

The work week has been going pretty well so far. Most of the day Monday was spent preparing for the museum’s Youth Day program for the following day, Tuesday June 16. (Youth Day in South Africa commemorates the 1976 Soweto uprisings when high school students protested against the use of Afrikaans as the official language of instruction in public schools. Their peaceful protests were greeted with violence by the apartheid government, and at the end of the day several students lay dead. The students’ protest ignited a wave of resistance in the following weeks and months, making the country ungovernable and ultimately leading to the end of apartheid nearly two decades later).

The program planned for Tuesday’s celebrations was designed to be an intergenerational dialogue between high school students and former residents of District Six (most of whom are in their 60s and 70s) about Youth Day and, building off of the museum’s soccer exhibit, the ways in which soccer and soccer culture have changed over the past decades. On paper, it looked like a promising afternoon. In reality, things didn’t quite work out so well. Not only we were poorly organized and frantically setting up last minute, half of the young students who RSVP’ed cancelled, leaving an highly uneven ratio of youth and former residents. Despite the uneven numbers, the dialogues went fairly well. From my perspective, I was fascinated to listen to all of the adults’ stories from 1976 and see their reactions to a video about the Soweto uprisings. Almost all of them gasped in unison when Henrik Verwoerd, the architect of apartheid, was interviewed on screen.

The end of the program was when things really went awry. A group of high school students were scheduled to perform a small skit to conclude the day. Their extremely corny skit, which ended with a singing of “I Believe the Children are the Future,” was good compared to what happened next. All of the sudden, some old man went to the front of the room, seized the microphone, and crooned an awful rendition of “Lady in Red” followed by the Stevie Wonder hit “I Just Called to Say I Love You.” While this was happening, I just sat and looked around the room at my co-workers to see find out what was going on, but I was only greeted with blank faces—they were equally confused. Let’s just say that this musical tribute didn’t exactly fit in well with the theme for the day. If nothing else, it gave us all something to laugh at after a long day of work.

Today, I spent some time at both the museum and the National Library. At the museum, I finalized a visitor survey that will be administered next week, and I succeeded in making contact with both several German museums and some Cape Town tourism officials. I do have to say that it is a bit awkward calling people out of the blue and asking them for help, but it is getting me valuable information and giving me a brief glimpse of what life was life before email! At the National Library, I made progress reading through transcripts of Parliament from 1994.

So far, I am really enjoying my research. This afternoon, as I walked out of the library, past the South African Parliament buildings, and towards the train station, all I could think about was how lucky I am that Duke is giving me the opportunity to be on the ground in Cape Town learning more about South Africa and its history. Today was a good day…let’s hope tomorrow follows suit.

Week 3 Begins

It’s been a rather low key past few days in Cape Town. Friday during the day, I accompanied the director of the District Six Museum, Bonita Bennett, to the World Congress on Civic Education at the Westin Waterfront Hotel. I wasn’t really sure what to expect from the convention when I arrived, but I was immediately impressed by the elegance of the hotel. When I headed into the main ballroom to listen to Bonita’s keynote address, I was interested to see where all of the delegates had come from. While some hailed from a variety of African, European, and Latin American countries, the vast majority of the attendees were Americans. So much for the “World” part of the convention’s title.

After Bonita’s speech, the convention broke up into smaller groups. In 5 different meeting rooms, children from various schools across South Africa were going to give presentations on their involvement with Project Citizen, a program run by the Department of Education that teaches high school students to identify problems within their community, identify possible causes, and formulate and enact solutions. When this was announced as the next activity of the convention, something struck me as a bit off. It seemed weird that instead of the delegates venturing outside of the gilded confines of the waterfront area into the students’ community, the school children were coming to present at this posh hotel. Moreover, the presentations were entitled “showcases” as if the children would be performing.

Bonita and I followed a crowd into a small meeting room, where a group of female high school students from Durban would be presenting on their project focusing on the recent xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Their self-confidence and public speaking ability was impressive, but they appeared to be speaking from memory and repeated trite sayings, such as “We are going to change our province, our country and our world.” However, as the girls gave their very scripted presentation, the audience oohed and aahed.

In the question and answer period that followed, American after American got up and praised the students. One woman, who looked like an exact replica of my ninth-grade English teacher Mrs. Smith, gave a five minute speech thanking them for allowing her to understand a topic that, because of her own race, she could not possibly understand.

Hearing these comments, Bonita and I looked at each other in disbelief. What was going on? Sure, these girls gave a decent presentation, but these Americans were waxing on and on. It felt like the South African children were on display—in a “showcase”—for the foreign visitors to marvel at, experience “racial difference,” and fulfill some need for an “African encounter.” It felt as though the Congress were held in South Africa only to give the delegates a nice vacation and experience an exotic location. The whole experience left me feeling a bit disgusted.

I do, however, have to say that I did very much enjoy the buffet lunch. It was delicious and by far the best meal I have had in South Africa so far this summer.

Friday night was very interesting. After enjoying a rather bountiful sushi buffet (once again, I overate…big surprise), we joined the Observatory (aka Obz…it is the neighborhood I am living in) Bar Crawl. We were expecting it to be a large event that would allow us to make friends and explore the area. Instead, it was only 5 students from my house and a group of students from a community college in Tennessee. Although it was dominated by Americans, the bar crawl was still a lot of fun, and we got a free t-shirt out of it.

Saturday we took the opportunity to explore downtown Cape Town. Several of the other people in my house work in the suburbs, so they have not made it to the city. As a result, I ended up assuming the role of the tour guide since I work downtown and am quite familiar with it. Sunday was a rainy, cloudy day, so we headed to a nearby mall to walk around and watch a movie. Instead of catching a Hollywood blockbuster, we chose to watch a South African documentary titled “Hidden Heart.” It focused on the story of Christiaan Barnard, the University of Cape Town doctor who performed the first heart transplant in 1967. It revealed that his efforts were greatly assisted by a black man named Hamilton Naki, who never was formally trained in medicine and was never given credit for his role because he was black. It’s amazing to think about all the men and women during the apartheid era who never achieved recognition for their efforts or who never had the opportunity to fulfill their potential simply because of the color of their skin.  Although at the same time, the same could be said of the US during the majority of the twentieth century.

Work this week should be pretty productive. At the museum on Monday, I began reading tourism reports published by the Cape Town tourist bureau to get a sense of what type of visitors (demographics, country of origin, interests) the city should expect next summer. Hopefully the information in the reports will help get the ball rolling with my research, and I can make some real progress.

Back in SA

As the plane began its final descent towards Cape Town International Airport and the majestic Table Mountain appeared in the distance against a clear blue sky, the first thought that came into my mind wasn’t how beautiful a view I was experiencing. Instead, a sudden panic came across me as reality began to hit. What was I doing? Why did I choose to spend, of all places, another summer in South Africa? Why was I subjecting myself to another Cape Town winter of endless rain? Why was I going to force myself to see the uncomfortable pain of poverty on a daily basis? Why was I going back to a city and a country that is still desperately struggling with racial conflict, economic disparity, high unemployment, and prevalent crime?

So as I landed on Wednesday morning after more than 30 hours of travel, I wasn’t exactly prepared. Two straight days of overnight flights left me unbearably tired, and I didn’t feel ready for my summer to begin. It didn’t seem real that I was back in South Africa, and I felt like I should have spent more than 4 days at home before heading off again. Moreover, I really had no clue what to expect from my housing situation, and I feared being stuck by myself in a dirty, substandard apartment.

Wednesday afternoon, after dropping my baggage off at the house where I am staying, I headed off to downtown Cape Town to pay a visit to the District Six Museum and let them know that I had arrived. I caught a minibus taxi on the main road leading into town (unlike last summer, I am living outside of the city center and cannot walk to work), and jumped inside. The three rows of seats were jam-packed with black and colored South Africans, and as a white American, I was out of my element. When we got to the taxi station downtown, I got out and had to walk through a large outdoor marketplace where street vendors were hawking everything from produce to clothes to electronics. And when I had finally arrived at the museum and spoke with my boss Mandy, we sat down in the museum’s café with some of my co-workers, and a political debate about the recent national elections erupted.

Feeling racial difference, seeing the sights of South Africans going about their daily lives, and hearing the passion and fervor of my co-workers when they spoke about local and national politics—real issues that they believe impact their lives at a personal level—I was reminded what I love about this country. My doubts and questioning seemed to fade a bit, and I felt at home, as it I had never left.

While I am feeling a lot better about being away from home, some misgivings linger. I am a bit daunted by the amount of work that lies ahead with both my research for my history thesis and my work for the District Six Museum. And on the home front, my housing situation is a bit of a mixed bag. The room that I am staying in is not that nice, but the kitchen is very large and has been recently remodeled. Plus, there are several other students from the US (2 from UNC) and Germany living here, so I have some sort of a community. However, Mandy told me that the 100 Rand a night price tag is too high, and she is looking into alternative places for me to rent. I’ll keep you posted on what happens there.

For the most part, I am adjusting to life back in South Africa pretty well. Jet lag wasn’t two bad (especially after a 14 hour sleep my first night here), and I am quickly re-familiarizing myself with all of my old favorite restaurants, shops, and bars. Overall, I am excited to see what the next nine weeks have in store.

Here’s to hoping that my first weekend back in SA goes well…I will post after then.

Recap of Last Week

Here is a quick recap of our last week in South Africa:

Friday July 4^th:  In the morning and afternoon, we toured the Parliament building and learned more about the South African political structures.  During the tour, we were able to sit in on a satellite press conference with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs who was in Pretoria.  It was interesting to hear how his evaluation of the Zimbabwe situation was countered and challenged by the reporters present.  After a home-cooked dinner by one of our professors, we headed to the V&A Waterfront for the Encounters Film Festival.  We watched a film titled “Courting Justice” about female court justices in South Africa.

Sat-Sun July 5-6:  It rained…a lot.  Although it was our first free weekend of the trip, the inclement weather kept us inside.

Mon July 7^th:  I began my last week at the District 6 Museum by working with the collections department and helping them to design their upcoming soccer exhibition.  It was interesting to see just how much time, effort, and craftsmanship goes into making a museum exhibit.

Tues July 8^th:  Instead of going to District Six, I went with the students who were working in crèches (day care centers) in the township.  Getting to interact with the children was an incredible experience.  Since they didn’t speak English (they speak Xhosa), I had to find creative ways to communicate with them.  Their wide smiles, bright attitudes, and love for singing and dancing really made the day special for me.  At one point, one of the toddlers took hold of my hand and just stared at it—I suspect that he had never seen a white hand before.  That truly was a very moving experience.

Wed July 9^th:  My last day at the Museum.  Mariki, one of my coworkers, took me to the University of the Western Cape to see their Mayibuye Archives.  I was amazed by the material they had in their collections.  I got to hold one of the handwritten textbooks used by prisoners on Robben Island!  Later in the day, my coworkers at the museum threw me a going away party and presented me with the parting gift of a book about District Six.

Thurs July 10^th: Last day in Cape Town!!  I headed downtown to the Greenmarket Square shops because I had yet to do any souvenir shopping.  After picking up some paintings, crafts, and a few books, I headed back to our guest house to start packing.  At night, our group shared one last dinner together.

Fri-Sat July 11^th-12^th: Flight home. Cape Town to Johannesburg (2 hrs), Jo’burg to Washington, DC with a stop in Dakar, Senegal (18hrs!!), and DC to Buffalo (1 hr).  The flight wasn’t too bad…and from Cape Town to Jo’burg, I sat next to another rising junior from Duke!!  What a small world!!

 

Pictures and a final reflections are still coming…check back in a few days.

 

 

They’re Not Dying Everywhere

In South Africa, a simple walk down the street is enough to keep you informed of all the latest news. Almost every lamppost is adorned with a simple rectangular piece of paper inscribed with one of the day’s headlines. About three to four of the major news stories are plastered on the posters across the city each day in an impressive display of manpower (and the cheapness of labor), all designed to entice drivers and passers-by to pick up a copy of the latest paper from the men and women peddling them in the street.

Since day one in Pietermaritzburg, I have been fascinated by the newspaper industry in South Africa. I love newspapers and journalism in general, and I do most of my reading–like an increasing number of Americans–online. Here, however, the situation is much different. Internet access is scarce and expensive, and most households don’t even own a computer. Therefore, people actually go through the old-fashioned process of buying a physical copy of the newspaper! Can you believe it? It’s really neat to see, especially because it provides a glimpse into what the role of newspapers in America once was before the advent of the internet. It’s also a sobering reminder that proclamations of the death of newspapers do not ring true everywhere.

For the most part, the quality of journalism is quite good…aside from the front page story of the KwaZulu Natal Witness (Pietermaritzburg’s paper) exclaming that Oprah was going vegan for a month to cleanse out her body.

To check out the KZN Witness’s website, go to www.witness.co.za

To visit the site of the Cape Times (Cape Town’s paper), click www.capetimes.co.za

I will get an update about the past week posted in a few days…

The Other Windy City

If I’ve learned one lesson since being here, it’s that you should always trust the locals.  During our stay in Pietermaritzburg, everyone we met warned us that Cape Town would be windy and rainy.  For some reason, I brushed them off.  PMB weather was nice and sunny, so Cape Town couldn’t be any different.  Well, I was wrong.  As soon as I stepped off of the airplane at the Cape Town Airport, I was greeted by a strong gust of wind—the first of many during my stay so far. 

 

Despite the wind, our first few days were sunny and pleasant, and the clear conditions afforded us some spectacular views of Table Mountain and the City Bowl.  The nice weather took a 180 turn later in the week, and the clouds burst open.  For three days straight, rain, fog, and gloom shrouded the city.  Cape Town weather, I’m told, is a lot like San Francisco’s.  And, as bad as this weather has been, it’s not too harsh for the middle of wintertime.  So far, I am enjoying myself here.  As I’ve stated before, I am definitely taking advantage of all of the culinary delights the city has to offer (compared to PMB).

 

For the civic engagement aspect of the trip, I am working with the District Six Museum (districtsix.org.za).  Up until the 1960s, the Cape Town’s District Six was home to a very culturally vibrant, prosperous, and diverse community filled with whites, blacks, and colored citizens.  Its cosmopolitan nature angered the apartheid government, and its central location to the city piqued the interest of business minded developers.  In 1966, the apartheid government declared the community a “White Area” and announced that the entire area would be demolished.  Over the course of a few years, thousands of people were forcibly removed to the much less desirable Cape Flats Townships, houses were destroyed, kinship networks and friendships were dissolved, and an entire community was literally erased from the map.  White housing planned for the area was never built, and up until this day, much of the land lays vacant.

 

In the late 1980s, former residents of District Six banded together to establish a redevelopment and beneficiary trust to reclaim the land so abruptly taken away from them.  Through their efforts, they established the District Six Museum in one of the few remaining buildings, the Buitenkant Methodist Church.  Today, the museum serves not only as a place to educate and remember the past, but also as a site of return for the former residents.  Many of the employees are former residents themselves.  The museum is very much an alive place; much of its work involves community outreach and activism.  Right now, it is playing a central role in the process of redeveloping District Six and helping the former residents move back to the land they once called home.

 

This past semester, in one of the classes taught by two of the professors accompanying us (Bob Korstad and Rachel Seidman), we learned about District Six.  For that class’s final project, I did a research paper examining how a similar museum could help the rebuilding process in the post-Katrina Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans.  Having read about the museum quite extensively, it was really cool to actually go there and meet with those who have dedicated so much to making it a reality.  What a thrilling way to actually bring to life what I had learned in the classroom!

 

Supervised by the Education Co-ordinator and Acting Director Mandy Sanger, my time there these past two weeks has focused mainly on their youth outreach program.  High school students from across the city (mostly from underprivileged backgrounds) gathered for a workshop designed to teach them how to tell their own life story, digitally.  After extensive planning, I helped the students scan photos, take pictures, and make a movie narrating their life.  It was a very interesting and rewarding process to take the time to get to know the students and learn more about their backgrounds.  At times, however, their relative lack of computer/technological knowledge was rather frustrating.  Next week, I will be working to help co-ordinate a street soccer festival the museum is organizing.  I am very excited to see how it turns out!

 

Friday, we headed down to the waterfront, but the bad weather dampened the experience.  Our ferry ride to Robben Island (where Mandela was imprisoned) was cancelled, and thick fog prevented us from seeing any scenic views.  We were lucky enough, however, to catch an outdoor address by Nobel Peace Prize Winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu.  Friday was the UN World Refugee Day, and Tutu took the opportunity to blast those who were involved in recent xenophobic violence.

 

This past weekend, we drove along the Cape Peninsula to take in all of its sights.  Our first stop was Simon’s Town to meet with Peter Storey.  Storey, a former Methodist bishop, recently taught at the Duke Divinity School for several years.  He also, alongside Tutu, led the powerful South African Council of Churches during the anti-apartheid years.  I found it really interesting to hear what motivated him to make personal sacrifices and fight for an equal South Africa.  (We also were able to catch a sermon of his on Sunday morning.  He was a wonderful preacher and a truly special individual).  Later in the day, we drove to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope.  The coastline along the peninsula is absolutely stunning, and the weather cleared up just in time for us to take in the beauty of the area.

 

On a more serious note, I do have to say that it is strange being in the middle of the latest political rumblings in southern Africa.  Earlier in the week, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s opponent Morgan Tsvangirai dropped out of the recount election, claming that, in the midst of political violence and Mugabe-led repression, a fair election is not possible.  Tsvangirai’s decision comes after months of culminating violence and unrest there. 

 

Aside from the South Africa’s appalling inaction on the matter, what is most disappointing for me to see is the widespread negative impact of Mugabe’s tyranny.  Poverty and rampant inflation have caused millions to flee to South Africa—millions of people I see on the street everyday begging for food and sleeping on the ground and in makeshift residences.  Sitting thousands of miles away in the United States, it’s easy to dismiss just another instance of African political instability.  But living here, meeting people who were driven from their homes for no reason puts a face to the problem and brings the news story to life.  What’s even more depressing is that there are millions of more refugees from other countries besides Zimbabwe, and in the future, there likely will be millions more. 

 

The fact that my time in South Africa is slowly wasting away has been increasingly on the front of my mind.  To be honest, I am starting to get a bit homesick.  But I still have over 2 weeks here, and I’m going to make the most of it.    I’m not ready to let this experience be over quite just yet.  

On to Cape Town

After weeks anticipating the excitement and engagement that a big South African city would have to offer, the time has finally come.  A weekend in Johannesburg and our first few days in Cape Town have proven to us just how small a city Pietermaritzburg really is.  While the vast array of restaurants, clubs, bars, tourists attractions are a nice change to what we were used to, I do have to say that I did enjoy the last four weeks in Pietermaritzburg.

Coming from a small city, it didn’t take that much adjusting for me to get used to PMB (other people in our group from large cities had bigger culture shocks).  Once I accepted the fact that the food wouldn’t be that great and that an exciting night would be working on a puzzle, I actually began to enjoy the city.  The people were friendly (especially at PACSA and at our B&B), the city is very rich in anti-apartheid struggle history, and its small scale made it easy to get to know and relatively untarnished from the commercialization that’s prevalent in Johannesburg and here in Cape Town.

Our last week in PMB was rather uneventful.  I pretty much was able to finish my work on the PACSA website, and I trained several of the employees how to update it—hopefully they will take the initiative to make it their own.  Individually, I think that I was able to make a tangible contribution to the organization, and I learned a lot about its function and the current environment for NGOs in South Africa.  As a group, we were able to conduct over 16 interviews with anti-apartheid activists/individuals involved in ecumenical social justice work in PMB.  These interviews will be deposited at the archives of the University of KwaZulu Natal and will form the core of an upcoming book celebrating the 30th anniversary of PACSA next year.  To celebrate our accomplishments and the friendships we made in PMB, our group hosted a barbeque last Thursday night for our co-workers and the professors that had been working with us.  It was a very enjoyable evening, but, naturally, it was sad to say goodbye.

Last Friday, we flew to Johannesburg to spend the weekend exploring the city.  After an eventful drive from the airport to our hotel (which included driving the wrong way down a one-way street, pushing a large van, and blocking the path of a large tour bus), we went to Constitution Hill in downtown Jo’burg.  The site features two prisons (one male, one female) that were used by the apartheid government to punish political prisoners.  Living conditions in the prisons were pitiful.  While the use of the site in the past is rather depressing to think about, its meaning and purpose have been transformed since the rise of democracy in 1994.  In a place where human rights were trampled upon, they are now upheld—the South African Constitutional Court was built on the prison grounds, and one of the prison’s walls was incorporated into the building.  It was really cool to see how such an oppressive place could be transformed so completely into a sanctuary for justice, equality, and freedom.

On Saturday—our second day in Jo’burg—we took an all-day tour of Soweto, a township outside of the city.  Soweto (which stands for Southwest Township) is home to more than 3 million people, making it the largest township in SA.  Driving around, it was interesting to observe the diversity within the township.  I had expected there to be uniform housing and uniform neighborhoods; instead, houses ranged from decent middle-class homes to shack settlements and slums.

The highlight of the tour for me was visiting the Regina Mundi Catholic Church.  Located centrally in the heart of Soweto, Regina Mundi was one of the only churches in Soweto that remained open during apartheid.  Because the Catholic Church vehemently spoke out against apartheid, Sowetans flocked to the church every Sunday as both a political and religious gathering point.  The apartheid state detested what happened at Regina Mundi and desperately tried to stop it.  After Sunday masses, they would fire bullets and tear gas into the crowds of people exiting the church.  (The roof still has bullet holes in it).  Standing in the middle of Regini Mundi—with its stark pews, scarcely decorated walls, and bullet hole ridden roof—I felt so much more alive and so much more like I was actually in a house of worship than I have ever felt in any church I have visited, even the most ornately decorated churches Europe has to offer.  In that building, people lived out their faith, even if it meant harsh consequences.

After a visit to the Hector Pieterson Museum (commemorating the youth uprising in Soweto in 1976 that greatly boosted the momentum of the anti-apartheid movement), we headed to lunch.  While waiting in line at the buffet, I saw a man that looked so familiar.  When I heard someone call out his name “Ray,” I immediately recognized him—it was Ray Nagin, the (in)famous mayor of New Orleans.  Later on, our group went up to the group from New Orleans and introduced ourselves.  (A few hours prior, outside of Regina Mundi, one of the girls in our group ran into a woman who used to be her neighbor in Washington, DC!)  I guess Soweto is the place to see and be seen!

When the tour concluded, we traveled to downtown Jo’burg to Central Methodist Church.  Peter Storey, a professor at Duke Divinity School, used to be the Anglican Bishop of Jo’burg, so he had a friend meet up with us to give a tour of the church.  I don’t think that any of us were quite ready for what we were about to see.  We had been told that the church was housing refugees from recent xenophobic attacks, so I was prepared to see a few people housed in spare rooms in the Church.  Instead, we were greeted by rooms and rooms packed full of men, women, and children living in stark conditions (sleeping on the ground, in stair wells, wherever they could find space).  It took us over one hour to make it through the building and tour each room housing the refugees.  Seeing their sheer numbers and interacting with them was an incredibly powerful experience.  Needless to say, the ride back to our hotel was rather silent.

Sunday morning we drove to Pretoria, the capital of South Africa, to visit the Freedom Park and the Voertrekker Monument.  The Voertrekker Monument, built in the late 1930s and early 1940s to commemorate the Great Trek of the Dutch Afrikaans leaving the British controlled Cape Town area (because the British outlawed slavery) in search of freedom in the country’s interior.  The monument played a huge role in fostering the  Afrikaan nationalism that led to the rise of apartheid in 1948.  Given the questionable motives of those who made the Great Trek and the sinister use of the monument, the whole experience was rather angering.  It was hard to look at statues, paintings, and friezes that memorialized such immoral people.  But then again, who was I to talk? Confederate flags and monuments still dot the landscape of the US South.

Next, we visited the nearby Freedom Park.  Still under construction, the park is meant to honor all those who have died in South African history for the cause of freedom.  It creatively uses water elements, landscape, and modern architecture to create an atmosphere and a place to honor and celebrate the nation’s freedom.  When completed, I think that the 48-acre park will be a really neat place for all South Africans, regardless of race, to celebrate their most basic commonality—freedom and humanity.

For our third stop of the day, we went to the National Apartheid Museum in Jo’burg.  The museum traces the rise of Johannesburg in the late 1800s after to discovery of gold, the origins of racial segregation, the rise of the apartheid state, anti-apartheid activism, and the transition to democracy in the early 1990s.  Having explored the anti-apartheid movement this past month, it was interesting to learn about it from a different perspective and in a highly visual manner.  The museum was very well done, and it really made me realize just how anachronistic, out of place, and unnatural apartheid was.

Monday (Youth Day in South Africa, a national holiday that commemorates the Soweto Uprising in 1976 and recognizes the importance of the youth in building a democracy), we flew to Cape Town, where we will be spending the remainder of our stay.  The city is beautiful, and I am really looking forward to working with the District Six Museum.

Since this post is getting too long, I’ll wait until next time to talk about life here and give a little background about the District Six Museum. Until then…