Day 12 – Robben Island

Day 12 – our last full weekday in South Africa – brought us to perhaps the most internationally well-known, and historical site in the country: Robben Island.

Located about seven miles from the Cape Town waterfront, Robben Island was used as a prison for almost three hundred years. The Dutch were the first to use this site, from as early as the 1600s. In fact, the name ‘Robben’ is Dutch for seal – a tribute to the many harbor seals that were once present on and around the island. In the mid 1800s, the British began using this site to house a growing leper population. More recently, Robben Island gained notice as the place where so many who fought against Apartheid were sent to serve their prison sentences. Nelson Mandela is perhaps the most famous of these, but thousands of political prisoners and freedom fighters were sentenced to this island prison. A site called South Africa History Online maintains a biographical profile of almost 1300 political prisoners held at Robben Island.

To tour Robben Island (or simply ‘the Island’), you purchase a ticket for a seat on one of four ferries that depart from Cape Town harbor. Tickets for adults cost 230 Rand (or $23) and tickets for those under 18 cost about $15. Passengers travel about 30 minutes by ferry to the prison, which is now a museum and UNESCO World Heritage site since the late 1990s.

Just a few notes on the ferry journey: First, if you plan to experience Robben Island, you should definitely book your tickets early.  When we arrived at the ticket counter, a large sign alerted passengers that the next thirteen days’ passage was already completely sold out! Luckily for us, our always-prepared tour guide Brenna had booked our tickets months in advance, so we were all set. Second, a ticket for the ferry, which includes the tour of the prison, does not guarantee that the ferry will be running. High winds, rough seas, or inclement weather could cancel some or all of the scheduled ferry runs. You just have to time it right. In our case, it was a completely beautiful day, with little wind and light seas.

Once you board the ferry, you find your own seat, whether on deck or in an enclosed compartment. I chose a seat on the right that was outside and was lucky enough to catch a stunning view of Cape Town harbor, with the majestic backdrop of Table Mountain:

I felt the anticipation on deck, as most of the passengers were quietly staring ahead, waiting for their first glimpse of the Island. Before long, we were pulling into a sheltered dock area and disembarking onto the pier: 

Once off the ferry, visitors walk a few yards to a parking area and board one of several tour buses. A visit to Robben Island is more than just a tour of the prison complex. It actually begins with a 30-minute tour bus drive around the grounds of the island, with a guide using a microphone to narrate the sights and providing historical information on the background of the Island. Our bus tour brought us to several interesting aspects of the island – completely separate from the actual prison compound. Here are four things that really stood out for me from the bus tour:

First, a graveyard still exists as evidence of the leper colony that was once housed here:

In addition, island officials decided that the lepers needed an official place to worship, so a church was built exclusively for them: 

(NOTE: No pews or benches were included!)

Second, at its highest point, there were as many as 1000 people living on the island (not counting prisoners or patients). These could be groundskeepers, guards, doctors, etc. Many brought their families, which included small children, to save on the long trip back and forth to the mainland. There was a need to educate these children, so a primary school was built in 1894. Our guide informed us that, with only 11 families currently residing on the island today, there is no longer any need for the school. This will be the first year since 1894 that the school will not be in operation. 

Third, the island contained a limestone quarry, where maximum security prisoners were sent to do hard labor. Limestone was dug out of the quarry using tools, then broken up into gravel that was used in roads: 

You may notice the hole in the back wall of the quarry. This is where tools and water were kept, but our guide told us that often prisoners would pause in there to discuss politics and news from the outside. Our guide also told us that quarry work was very dangerous, as no masks or protection were used. Prisoners often returned to their cells covered in white limestone dust, which got into their lungs and caused respiratory issues. 

You may also notice that on the right side of the picture, in the foreground, there is a large pile of stones. This stone pile has historic significance, but after the fall of Apartheid. After Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa, almost 1000 former political prisoners attended a reunion on Robben Island. As the visitors toured the quarry, Nelson Mandela walked off to the side and dropped a rock onto the ground. This action was followed by many of the visitors, to form a type of cairn or rock memorial to their time on the Island:  

 My fourth item is the saddest of all, and concerns a political prisoner named Robert Sobukwe. Sobukwe was a very learned man, rising to university lecturer by 1954. He was one of the main voices who advocated for an African-only solution to Apartheid problems. His efforts led to a group of activists breaking away from the African National Congress and creating the Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC), which Sobukwe was elected president of in 1959. In early 1960, Sobukwe organized a large demonstration against the white government’s requirement that all blacks carry pass books. Hundreds joined in the ‘anti-pass’ march. Along the way, Sobukwe and others were arrested and taken away. Sobukwe was charged with sedition and served a three-year prison term, but not on Robben Island. On May 3, 1963, one day before his sentence was to end, the white government passed the General Law Amendment Act. This law allowed the Justice Department to ‘detain’ political prisoners up to one additional year – and this detention could be done indefinitely. The Justice Department used this law to transfer Sobukwe to Robben Island and ‘detain’ him there for an additional SIX years. Government officials must have considered Sobukwe an extremely dangerous prisoner, for they had a separate structure built for him, away from the rest of the prisoners. In this ‘house’, he served the additional six years in solitary confinement: 

(I was too slow to get a good shot of Sobukwe’s prison house from the tour bus,
so this image is borrowed from Tracks4Africa.co.za) 

Before the bus tour ended, we stopped at a small rest area for a brief break. As we got out of the bus to stretch, the view from this area was unbelievable, as you could clearly see all of Cape Town harbor and Table Mountain stretching out behind the city: 

At the conclusion of the bus tour, we found ourselves back in the same parking lot by the ferry dock. We walked to the other end of the parking lot and entered the main prison complex. Ironically, the sign over the main gate read “We Serve With Pride”: 

As we passed through the gates, guides were standing in the entrance, collecting visitors into groups for their tour of the prison. It is very important to note that these guides were actually former prisoners who spent time on Robben Island! In my case, I got into a group that was guided by Jama Mbatyoti, who served five years (1977-1982) on Robben Island for participating in anti-Apartheid activities. 

Our guide:  Jama Mbatyoti

Jama led us into the main complex, where our first stop was the group prison cell: 

He explained that rooms like this were designed to hold 30 prisoners, but there were often 40-50 contained in this one room. Even though there are beds in the room now, prisoners slept on mats until 1978, when they were finally replaced by beds. You’ll see there are boxes mounted along the walls. These were places that prisoners stored their possessions. I was able to open one up to get a look inside – and they were NOT very big: 

Our guide also explained that prisoners began in a group cell and, through good behavior, earned the right to move to a single cell and gain more privileges. If you were in a group cell, you were allowed to send and receive only ONE letter per month. You could also have a single visit per month. The “A” single cells gave prisoners the right to four letters and four visits per month. The “B” and “C” cells were for more serious prisoners, with inmates in the “B” cells receiving solitary confinement. Jama told us that on Robben Island, solitary required you to remain in your cell for 23 hours, with 30 minutes of exercise in the morning and 30 minutes of exercise in the afternoon.

We exited the group cell and made our way across the courtyard. Here, in the back corner, was an area known as “Mandela’s Garden”, where Nelson Mandela tended plants. It is well-known today because it was also a place that Mandela hid newspapers and other information that was smuggled into the prison! 

This courtyard is very similar in size and layout to the one in which prisoners were forced to sit in the sun and break rocks mined from the quarry: 

(Courtyard today) 

 (Similar area showing prisoners at hard labor)
(Image from University of Minnesota) 

Off the courtyard, we proceeded to the different cell blocks, which were long corridors with cells on both sides. This corridor had two heavy metal doors at each end. When we entered, I noticed the doors had a large hole cut at eye-level. I assume this allowed the guards to lock down the corridor, but still keep watch on the prisoners: 

Corridor of cells
(Image borrowed from Flickr)

Steel doors at one end of the corridor

(Looking through a hole in the steel doors)  

This was the cell block that held Nelson Mandela for 18 years. His cell, the fourth on the right, was the only one with any materials in it, although the only ‘materials’ was a waste can, wooden stand, washing bowl and three mats: 

Inside of Nelson Mandela's cell

The mood of the tour group got very quiet when we understood that this was Mandela’s cell. It’s odd to think that this tiny room could have any connection with Mandela, but I have to admit, there did seem to be a different feeling to it! I was surprised to learn that the cell was open and you were allowed to walk in. I did not, however, and just stayed on the outside, staring in from the corridor. I wondered how many times Mandela looked out through those bars, or out his window, and if he ever thought the day would come where he would ever be released. Even after 18 years, when he was moved from Robben Island to Pollsmoor Prison, it was another 9 years until his was finally released.

Mandela’s cell was a dramatic, but somber end to the prison tour. We were allowed to walk around the corridors, but most opted to head back to the dock area. I found myself off to the side, in the area where Jama was standing. I asked him if he wouldn’t mind telling me how he felt coming back to the place of his captivity for five years. He paused, but said “At first, it was very hard, but after a few months I got used to it.”

I had brought a copy of Voices of Robben Island, Jürgen Schadeberg’s excellent book that not only covers the history of the Island in detail, but has over 20 first-hand accounts from former prisoners: 

Voices of Robben Island by Jürgen Schadeberg  

Although Jama was not directly featured in the book, his history was as much a part of the Island as anyone else’s. I asked him if he would mind signing my book and he agreed without any hesitation. His signature was just a scrawl, but it was what he wrote below the signature that made me stop: he wrote Prisoner 51/77, which was the Island’s system of labeling him as the 51st prisoner to be assigned to the prison in 1977. More than thirty years later, this man still identified himself with his prison number. 

Day 11 (Part 3) – Dinner with South African novelist and poet Patricia Schonstein

The third part of our VERY busy day commenced after our time at LEAP. We went back to our rooms for a rare two hour break, and then headed out to a residential section of Cape Town. Here, our entire tour group spent the evening at the home of South African novelist and poet Patricia Schonstein and her husband Don Pinnock.

Ms. Schonstein began the evening by relating her transition from a South African resident to a published writer. In the early 1980s, with two small children of her own, Ms. Schonstein opened a preschool that allowed families of all races and backgrounds to attend. With racial violence present in the Eastern Cape at this time, it was a risky undertaking. However, she explained how well all the children – and families – got along and formed a real community around the school. From her experiences with this school and her interactions with the children, she realized the need to get books in the hands of township children. This was even more apparent, she told us, because the local public library was not open to all races. Thus began her writing career, where she crafted stories and poetry with African characters and themes. To date, she has about 15 published works, spanning children’s literature, poetry, novels and even a pictorial grammar book for Xhosa!

Don Pinnock entertained us with a few stories of what life was like living in South Africa during Apartheid. Don related one memorable story in which his actions advocating for a more equal South Africa put him on the police’s “watch” list. At one point, he was apprehended as an agitator and brought to a police station with other demonstrators. He contacted Patricia, who arrived at the police station, located Don and said “Let’s go”. In all the noise and bustle, the two of them made their way out of the station and no charges were ever brought for the incident. Don, in a somewhat deadpan delivery, ended the story by saying “Of course, we had to go into hiding for a while after that, but…”

Ms. Schonstein and Don had dinner prepared for us, and we continued our conversation over a delicious quiche, salad, vegetables and South African wine. Patricia was excited to tell us about her current project, a collection of poetry and verse called Africa! My Africa! An Anthology of verse.  The book is in its final edits and its first printing will be signed and numbered copies. Proceeds from these versions will be used to fund Ms. Schonstein’s Seed Readers program. This is a program that brings children’s books to children who cannot afford them. She explained that she was close to securing 1000 orders for this book, at which time the first printing will begin. Always eager to help, our group purchased 10-12 copies among ourselves!

I must admit I was initially nervous when I learned we would be spending time at the home of an author. I didn’t really know what to expect – perhaps something rather stuffy and formal. What we got was a lovely, relaxed evening that made me feel like we had all known each other for a long time. After our intense seven-hour experiences, it was the perfect way to conclude our day.

Our tour group with Patricia Schonstein (bottom row, left)

To learn more about Ms. Schonstein, please visit her website. There is information about her writings, as well as her Seed Reader initiative and how to order copies of Africa! My Africa!

Day 11 (cont'd) – LEAP Science and Math School & Langa Township

Right after our visit to the District Six Museum, we headed east for about 15 minutes to a section of Cape Town called Pinelands. Here, we arrived at the campus of LEAP Science and Maths School.

The LEAP education model includes offering extended school days and free education to students from high-need communities. The idea for the LEAP model started in 1990, when John Gilmour of Pinelands High School began offering three 90-minute academic sessions to 100 students from the Langa township. (Langa is an area created in the 1920s to house black Africans who were forced to move to black-only locations.) The success of this program in Langa resulted in the creation of an educational facility in Langa, with teachers from were being brought in for the academic sessions. The gains made by this first LEAP School (now called LEAP1) spurred other programs to start across South Africa. LEAP stands for Langa Educational Assistance Program. Today there are six LEAP programs, including the one in Pinelands (called LEAP2), which we were visiting today.

When we arrived, we were greeted by a member in LEAP’s Future Leaders program. This initiative takes LEAP graduates and prepares them to be prepared and effective teachers. From the description on the LEAP website, this program provides vital teacher support, such as classroom training, mentoring and internships. Three current LEAP students, Nosipho, Shelly and Solly, were assigned to us as tour guides for our visit.

Our tour guides: Nosipho, Shelly and Solly

My tour was led by Solly, who showed us a few classrooms and was very knowledgeable about the structure and operation of LEAP. For example, Solly explained that LEAP tries to work with manageable class sizes. There are currently about 50 students in each grade (8 through 12). With two classes per grade, this translates into no more than 25 students per class.

The academic schedule is unique to LEAP, with classes running from 8:15am to 5:15 pm five days a week, and a session on Saturday from 9am to 12pm! This additional instructional time, as well as requiring students to take some form of math and science every year is showing results. LEAP boasts a 95% pass rate for its grade 12 students. Seventy-five percent of their graduating students go on to post-secondary studies in colleges or universities. When you consider that most of these students come from very disadvantaged backgrounds, this level of success becomes even more impressive.

Partnerships with other schools and communities is also a big component to the LEAP model. As noted on their website: “Each LEAP school is linked to a privileged private partner school for the purpose of promoting integration across cultures and society; sharing science, sports and careers facilities; participating in joint social development work in our communities, as well as sharing teaching and learning practices.”

As we traveled to different classrooms, we noticed that every room had a copy of LEAP’s Code of Conduct. Often, these posters were hand-made by the class. This is just one version that caught my eye:

This idea of community is even evident in the ‘small stuff’, such as referring to their weekly assemblies as “community meetings”.

Finally, LEAP believes that change comes when the students are invested in themselves. To that end, every grade has a Life Orientation (or LO) class that helps students discuss their feelings, and build a sense of community and emotional support with one another.

Later in the tour, when Solly allowed us to sit in out some classes, I had the opportunity to share in a Life Orientation class. Students sat in a circle and the instructor asked them for suggestions on the next activity. This class settled on something called “If you really knew me”. In this activity, students go around the room reciting “If you really knew me, you would know…”, then completing the sentence with something about themselves. The goal is to get students to open up to one another in a safe environment. Yes, there were some who offered up less than ‘meaty’ items (e.g. “If you really knew me, you would know I am hungry right now”), but many were quite thoughtful (and heavy!), with students exposing thoughts of home strife, suicide and fear for their safety.

After the class finished with its first pass of this activity, students took a second turn. I noticed that on the second pass, the level of seriousness went up, with almost every student contributing something that was thoughtful and reflective. It was interesting to consider that this type of class is a LEAP requirement across all grades.

Another facet of the LO class is a daily journal entry. Students are free to write on any topic, but, as the LO instructor pointed out, their entries often gravitated toward personal reflection. The journal was therefore another outlet for students to deal with personal issues in addition to, or in place of, the more public forum in LO class.

When our time in the LO class was over, we had a few minutes to talk with Solly. We asked if she lived far from the LEAP campus and how she found traveling back and forth between home and school. Se said, in a very matter of fact tone, that travel was really her only cause for concern. Although her trip only took about fifty minutes, there had been some incidents of students being robbed. Recently, robbers posing as taxi drivers have lured students into a taxi, then drove off and robbed them – sometimes at gun point! Solly said she had been robbed once herself. She told us “Every day when I get ready to travel back home, I stop and think about strategies for traveling safely.” She said she was worried, but the experience at LEAP was not one that she was ready to give up because of travel issues.

Following our tour and classroom visits, we had lunch with several members of the Future Leaders program. It was impressive to see how many of theme had toured educational settings in other countries. One student related their experiences in Chicago schools, and another spoke of their visit to San Francisco. It was inspiring to watch their excitement as they shared their stories. You could tell they were looking forward to the time when they would have their own classroom.

About mid-afternoon, we were taken on a brief tour of the Langa township.  Our guide was born and raised in this township and was a student in LEAP’s Langa school. We first stopped at the Guga S’thebe Culture & Art Center.  This building had a very ornate entrance as well as a very beautiful mural on the outside wall:

Entrance to Guga S’thebe Center 

Inside, we were brought into the pottery room, where volunteers and community members who were taught the pottery process prepared all types of ceramic items:

Ceramic artists at work

One of the artists here told us that all residents were welcome to come and learn how to make pottery. There was a craft store in the lobby, where visitors can purchase items made right in this Center. Proceeds go back to the Center for materials, etc. I found the artistry on their ceramic items to be bold, bright and alive. I managed to find a vase, cup and small bowl that (I hope) would all fit in my luggage:

(NOTE: For those traveling, have no worry about protecting the pieces you buy: the person who sold me my items did an amazing job covering what I purchased with copious quantities of tape and bubble wrap!)

From the Arts Center, we made our way up and down various streets until we came to the place where it all began, the site of the original educational facility in Langa:

Original LEAP facility in Langa

Inside view of study area

It may not look like much, but this site offered hundreds of Langa students the opportunity for extended academics. Today, LEAP maintains this site as a tutoring center, where local residents can come to study, read or just have a quiet, well-lit place to get work done. LEAP also enhanced this site, adding another modular unit that acts as an ‘internet café’ for residents. Our guide told us that so many people use this resource, funds from this center pay for the staff and equipment, allowing this site to essentially be self-sufficient:

Internet access offered by LEAP

Following our visit to Langa, we returned to the LEAP School in Pinelands. We were privileged to have some time with John Gilmour, LEAP’s Executive Director and the man who started this whole concept over 20 years ago. John was a very soft-spoken man, but he had a lot to say regarding the state of education in South Africa. He quickly explained that it will be up to the youth of this country to make real changes (in education and elsewhere). He was very excited about an initiative called Subject2Citizen.  Headed by Dr Mamphela Ramphele, a long-time anti-Apartheid activist, this group envisions nothing less than “A proactive and informed South African citizenry, knowledgeable about its constitutional rights and responsibilities, walking together with an effective government to create a better future for all.” John spoke to us about the need for South Africans to identify wounds from the past and create a vision for the future. His experiences with the Subject2Citizen movement gave John hope that this could be addressed.

With so many day-to-day issues, we were honored that John made time for us and shared his thoughts for a better South Africa. Before we knew it, our 5+ hours at LEAP had come to an end. We thanked John and his staff for their hospitality and headed on our way.

Our day was not over yet…

Day 11 – District Six: A Survivor’s Account & Museum

The eleventh day of our tour was perhaps our busiest (as you will see from the length and number of entries that follow).  Each of the day’s three events provided different, but powerful experiences and gave me even more to think about as I tried to make sense of all that I experienced on this unbelievable tour. 

We began our morning with a ten minute drive toward the Cape Town harbor.  It looked like we were heading straight for the business district, but Ben, our all-knowing driver, pulled to the side of the main road, where a long street curved off into the distance.  It wasn’t a street that took any kind of traffic, as a large cement barrier was placed across the opening of the road:

Ben stopped the van, got out and waited for us to follow him.  There wasn’t much talking as we walked with Ben to the barrier.  He turned and said “If you look off to the right, about the point of perhaps the fourth light pole - that used to be my home.”  

Ben Jattiem explaining the history of District Six

With that, Ben began a very detailed history of this area.  We were standing in what use to be called the Sixth Municipal District of Cape Town, or District Six.  Originally a mixed community of working class families, the Apartheid government declared it a Whites-Only area and, in 1966, began ‘relocating’ families to location far away from this developed area. Looking just behind this road, the view was stunning, with a large rock formation only a few hundred yards away.  It’s not hard to understand why whites were so desirous of this location: 

Ben’s family was part of more than 60,000 people who were ultimately forced out of District Six.  As Ben explained, in the beginning of the relocation, families were offered money for their homes or a home in the relocation area.  The new homes were sub-standard and the money offered was so little that you could not get a decent place to live anywhere in the vicinity.  In Ben’s case, his family was relocated about twenty miles away – and in the middle of the school year.  Rather than enroll in a new school for half a year, Ben traveled the twenty miles each way every day to finish out the year in his current school.  

Ben went on to tell us how there were different phases of this relocation effort.  In the early days, families were given a lot of advanced notice that their homes were designated for relocation.  They had time to pack their belongings and prepare themselves for the ‘move’.  As time went on, whites became frustrated with the slow rate of relocation.  The ‘advanced notice’ became shorter and shorter.  In some instances, families were given only days notice before a bulldozer would appear and begin tearing down their home.  More construction crews were hired to speed up this process, but it was still not fast enough for the government.  Ben related a story of one man who went to work in the morning and came home at the end of the day to see his house being torn down.  Orders were given to ‘get rid of these homes’ and little was done to respect the rights of the homeowners.   As homes were being destroyed at a faster and faster rate, a new problem arose:  disposing of the growing mass of rubble.  Ben told us that some work crews were given orders to just ‘dump the stuff in the sea’, so they did.  To this day, he told us quietly, there are long-time residents from this area who have never been to the beautiful Cape Town harbor – and refuse to go - because they feel like it was built on top of their homes.

There wasn’t much we said (how could you?) after Ben finished such a personal story.   We got back in the van and made our way to the District Six Museum.  I made a comment that it was going to be very interesting to see how the ‘relocation’ was portrayed in the museum and wondered out loud how things were going to be ‘spun’.  I was told that this museum wasn’t created by the government to lessen the severity of their acts, but to memorialize the families and culture of the former District Six residents.  In fact, the mission statement on the Museum website begins by stating how it “seeks to serve the interests of the victims of the various forms of forced removals that occurred in District Six, the larger city of Cape Town and in other parts of South Africa.”  When we arrived at the Museum, it only took a second to see this was not a typical ‘museum’.  First, the central space was filled with artifacts that brought the original feel of the District Six community back to life.   A large display featured over seventy of the original street signs from the areas that were destroyed: 

At the base of this towering exhibit was a large mound of earth that was somehow preserved from the bulldozed area: 

The second purpose of this Museum (again, from its mission statement) says “The Museum seeks to place itself at the heart of the process of reconstruction of District Six and Cape Town through working with the memories and experiences of dispossessed people. It offers itself as a center for former residents of District Six and others to recover, explore and critically engage with the memories and understandings of their District Six and apartheid pasts, for the purpose of remaking the city of Cape Town.”  Therefore, the Museum isn’t just a place for residents to vent their pain and anger, it seeks to be a part of a healing process.  This intent is clearly evident in the main display room as well. Just to the left of the street sign display was an immense tapestry, called the Memory Cloth, created as a place for District Six survivors to record their thoughts and feelings.  My composite photo is not that clear (sorry!), but I include it here so you can understand the sheer size of this powerful object: 

According to the Museum website, this cloth is almost 1000 feet long.   A sign close by the Memory Cloth explains that, as time went on, some of the writing started to fade.  The Museum got volunteers to use thread and stitch over all the messages, thereby preserving the words for years to come.  

Just one of perhaps thousands of messages!  

As I stood there, taking this all in, I did not notice Ben had come into the Museum with us.  Before he left, he pointed out a large photo mounted on a rotating post.  On one side was a picture of District Six before the relocation effort.  When you pushed the photo, it rotated around, showing a picture of the same area after the relocation.  Ben quietly told me that this photo included the area where we had just been and that his home was visible in the ‘Before’ image: 

District Six before relocation

(… and after)

As I walked around and observed other areas of the Museum, I could see how the majority of the displays and exhibits were about the residents and their memories.  Whole rooms were recreated from residents’ memories, and the small, but memorable parts of everyday life, like a hopscotch square, were included:  

There were also testimonials by former residents.  I found the one below was particularly moving.  It was from Roderick Sauls, now a well-known artist: 

This reads:

A Personal Memory 1999 Roderick K. Sauls 

I was born in District Six in 1954 and my family was forcibly removed to the township, Bonteheuwel, when I was about seven years old.  I have many memories of the place itself, some vague though tantalizing, others more vivid.  I have a lasting legacy:  the objects, artefacts [sic] and oral histories of relatives, ex-residents and friends at home.

This exhibit explores what memory means to me and also to those who experienced nostalgia and loss within our country.  In my determination to remember I am constantly reminded of Milan Kundera’s famous dictum from The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, “The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.”

The objective of this exhibit is to restore my lost identity.  My desire is to assert my pride in my own identity, my African heritage, my culture and memories.

The collection of exhibits, images and art was really so well done.  It made you realize just how much was ripped away from these people – and for no logical reasons.  These residents weren’t criminals, they weren’t terrorists – they were simply ‘not white’. 

If you want to learn more about the Museum and the various exhibits, I would suggest their outstanding website.  Among the many pages, there is also a very detailed timeline of events that will help to put things into perspective.  

Day 10 –Traveling to Cape Town & Etafeni Care Centre

Hard to believe this is already day 10 in this amazing adventure!

On Thursday, we woke early and were on our way to the airport by 6am for a flight to Cape Town, our last stop.  It was a beautiful day, with blue skies and little wind.  Our distance was about 650 miles and the flight took just about two hours:



We were introduced to our fourth driver, Ben Jattiem, a lifetime resident of Cape Town.  Ben got us into his van and, just like that, we were on our way to our first visit, the Etafeni Care Centre. 

Even though the drive from the airport to Etafeni was less than three miles, Ben provided us with a number of interesting bits of information along the way.  The one that has stuck in mind most clearly was his story about our destination.  The Etafeni Centre is in the Nyanga township.  Ben explained that when the township first came into being, the government named the streets “NY-1”, “NY-2”, etc.  Residents thought the ‘NY’ stood for Nyanga, but learned that it stands for “Native Yard’ – in essence, ‘the place we keep the locals’.  Residents have been trying to get these street names changed for many years, and, from this newspaper report,  it seems like progress is finally being made .  

Just 10 minutes from the airport, we arrived at the Etafeni Centre.  Etafeni provides care, training and support to parents who have been infected with HIV.  According to Etafeni’s website, “almost 28% of the local population in Nyanga is infected with the HI Virus.”  Their beautiful white building is situated directly within the Nyanga township:

(Image from Etafeni’s 2010 Annual Report)

We met Barbara Miller, Etafeni’s Development Director, who spent about an hour with our group, explaining the successes and challenges for this Centre.  Barbara spoke to each of us, eager to understand why we were in South Africa.  She explained how Etafeni continues to offer adult family members with programs and support in order ease their strain and offer a solid base for their future.  (Here is an excellent 10-minute video that really shows you the full scope of what Etafeni offers):



We had a full day planned with each of us scheduled to be in various parts of the Centre and offer our assistance, when possible.  We began with a tour of the site, going by a preschool classroom with about 20 kids involved at an ourdoor playground structure.  We also saw a garden that provides some of the food for their meals:

As we walked around the site’s second floor, we found ourselves in the Computer Center, where about sixteen young adults were busy finalizing their resumes (or CVs, as they call them outside the US).  The instructor accepted my offer to stay and assist students, so I stayed for the last 30 minutes of class and went around the room, checking their work.  I was impressed by how well their final versions looked and the amount of information they had to share.  For some, this was only their second or third time *ever* in front of a computer, but they had quickly picked up how to edit and format a MS Word document.

Just as in Kliptown, there was one student who seemed particularly driven to get her resume to be the best of the best.  As I watched her type, she created a section called “Personality” and wrote “I swallow stress”.  I thought I understood what she meant, but I asked her to clarify for me. She told me “You know, when you’re working, and everything starts building up…I like that – I can handle that!”  I suggested she change her phrase to something like “I handle stress well” and she thought that sounded ‘more professional’ and made the change.  

These students were very aware that the resumes are their ticket to a job and everyone was taking the editing session very seriously.  When the class was over, they allowed me to take this group shot.  (The ‘driven’ student is on the far left, in bright blue.  As soon as I took the picture, she ran over and asked to see it – to make sure she got in the shot!  This young lady is going places, I just know it!)

Following this brief interaction, I rejoined the group for lunch with Barbara.  We were joined by Val Barry, the Chairperson of the Etafeni board.  She spoke to the group about the growth of Etafeni, going back to the time in 2000, when local men and women began making bricks, laying the foundation and literally building this structure themselves!

After lunch, we broke into two groups, with half going to the women’s income program and the rest going first to offices, then to a classroom.   I started at the offices, where our group helped clean out an area to be used for Etafeni’s ever-growing files.  Following that, we went to a life skills class for teenagers, where students discussed a current events assignment they had worked on.  They were required to find a topic from a local newspaper and summarize it for the class.  A general whole-class discussion followed that involved most of the 20+ students in the room.  Topics we heard ranged from President Zuma’s latest moves, to crime, to the lack of jobs.  The instructor did a great job keeping everyone engaged and focused on the discussion. 

After the life skills class, we headed downstairs to swap with the first group in the women’s income program.  Here, women are taught a skill, whether sewing or beadwork, to create items than can generate money for them and the Centre.  In this room, women were sewing baby blankets and quilts.  We met Teresa Lumani, who is the head of this program.  She was engaged in a lively conversation with the other women, telling one about a pattern, and another about the next item to be sewn.  I offered to help, but the women looked at me with an odd expression when I told them that, yes, I did really know how to sew.   (One woman broke out in a laugh!).. In the end, we just watched them as they created their beautiful items, not missing a step in their sewing, pinning or binding. 

At this point, it was about 4pm, time for us to head out and get checked into our next set of rooms at Little Scotia.  We bid everyone goodbye, but not before we stopped in their craft store and bought some official Etafeni-made items!  From a preschool, to a childcare center, to life skills for youths and training for adults, Etafeni is an extremely busy place that is having such a positive impact for people in this community.