A further extract from the same chapter as the last one i shared, this one looks at the history that is taught and the need for young black men and women to have stories and heroes they can relate to: One writer makes the point that in an effort to destroy completely the structures that had been built up in the African Society and to impose their imperialism with an unnerving totality the colonialists were [...]
In my quest to continue learning South African history from voices other than those i grew up with i was encouraged to read, 'I Write What I Like' by Steve Biko. Not so much a story as a collection of letters and speeches, this book is really helpful as it contains real time words, thoughts and ideas from one of South Africa's great leaders written during the height of apartheid. The Catholic Herald had this [...]
My friend Nkosi has written for me a number of times on this blog and so it was a great privilege to have him around for a special meal on Friday night with some friends, that i wrote about over here, and i asked him to share some of his impressions from the evening: Conversation is an integral part of transformation. It was for this reason that I went to Brett's house together with Monde [...]
One of the ways i am trying to prepare myself to be a part of a better conversation in South Africa in terms of race, reconciliation and unity is by learning some of the country's history... ...from different voices than i grew up with. To that effect, after my weekend at Robben Island, i got hold of a copy of Benjamin Pogrund's book titled, 'Robert Sobukwe: How Can Man Die Better' and just finished reading [...]