Hello Everyone!
Monday marked the third week anniversary of my arrival in South Africa, and so I wanted share some of my thoughts on the country and culture that go deeper than simply saying they drive on the left side of the road. I guess I should add the caveat here that all the opinions here are mine, and are not intended to give anyone offense--I still have much to learn about this country. Also, let me say that I have been very warmly welcomed here, and have yet to meet a South African that I don't like!
South Africa, like many countries in developing parts of the world, is filled with contrasts and paradoxes. There is the structure of the nation itself: in many ways, modern South Africa is still a young country trying to define itself, its government, and its place in the world, although the prestige and global recognition brought about by hosting the 2010 World Cup served as a sort of worldwide acknowledgement of South Africa's coming of age. Apartheid seems light years away, though in truth it was only dismantled in 1993, and non-whites were only allowed to vote beginning in 1994.
I have not seen any racism here, though discrimination in favor of African-owned and other non-white owned companies exists in the business world through the Black Economic Empowerment policy. Overall, it is incredible how far South Africa has come in so short a time--it's difficult for me to imagine that some of the young African men and women who are my friends at the student house lived much of their childhood under Apartheid.
Yet South Africa also has an old consciousness. Underneath the modernity, industrialization, and westernization, it is still Africa. Many black South Africans both in townships and in town still identify themselves by their tribal background, and the diversity of tribal languages is alive and well. It seems that everywhere you go, a different African language is being spoken, which leads to many South Africans knowing a huge number of languages. One girl in my student house speaks and understands ten languages, including English, Afrikaans, Sepedi, Sisotho, and Zulu, to name a few (and, I'm sure, to spell them incorrectly--please excuse the phonetics!). But I guess that is to be expected in a country where the national anthem alone has lyrics in five languages! Everyone speaks English, and some of them speak it with an accent that is much purer and more dignified than mine will ever be, I'm sure.
Amongst many white South Africans (and maybe black Africans, but I can't speak from personal experience), both of English and Afrikaans descent, there seems to be a strong attraction to pioneering roots. Biltong, a dried meat jerky now usually made from beef, but originally from beef, remains a favorite snack. Camping out in the bush is a favorite weekend activity, and small three-wheeled trailers are available to rent especially for this purpose. Even the tradition of braai--the Afrikaans word for barbecue--is drawn heavily, I think, from the days of hunting big animals out in the bush. In this respect, a sector of the white South African population seems closer in spirit to the Australians than to anyone else.
Yet, despite its progress and its leadership of Africa in many realms, South Africa faces great challenges. Poverty is obvious in shanty towns and beggars, but more subtle in other ways. In the mornings the sides of the highways and streets are covered with streams of men and women coming in to Pretoria by bus, taxi, and foot from townships such as Mamelodi, where the Viva Village is located. The women, wearing skirts and colorful head wraps or green or blue uniforms go in to work as cooks, cleaners, and housekeepers in Pretoria, where most of the middle-class homes have some sort of domestic help. Sometimes these women stay for years and help raise the children, becoming nearly part of the family. (I have mentioned several times that at home I cleaned houses once a week to make money, and no matter whether I was speaking with African or white students at the student house or to people living in Mamelodi, people have been very surprised. There are huge divides in living standards in South African, and the resulting social stratification means that a girl in the middle class--especially a white girl--does not clean houses for other people to make extra money. That I have done so struck most of my listeners as highly unusual.) Men frequently work at jobs that no longer exist in America by serving as gas station attendants, or giving parking direction to and then watching over cars in parking lots for tips.
I believe that fear also plays a greater part of many peoples' lives in South Africa. There are two main fears; the fear of crime, and the fear of HIV/AIDS. Frequently combining these two, of course, is sexual violence, of which South Africa's rating is one of the highest worldwide, especially when it comes to crimes against children. Many of the stories I have heard are so horrific they are difficult to believe. In any case, according to Wikipedia, the average South African woman is more likely to be raped than to complete secondary school, and only one in nine rapes is reported. Living in townships with absentee fathers and husbands (or worse: fathers, husbands, and relatives who commit the crimes) and no backup finances for flight or for medical treatment leaves women and children incredibly vulnerable. The societal implications of this are huge--it infects innocent people with fatal AIDS, makes domestic violence seem normal, and destroys trust in family relationships. Funeral services of one sort or another are probably the fourth most popular businesses in the townships, right after food stands, hair salons, and cell phone minutes, and it seems everyone knows someone--or many people--who have died because of AIDS. Meanwhile in wealthy neighborhoods, every house has compound-like walls topped with barbed wire, electric fences, and signs announcing their subscription to 24-hour armed response guard service. Frequently they also have a large dog, such as a German shepherd, for protection, and a smaller, yippy dog, such as a terrier or something, to wake the larger dog up! Crime in the form of corruption is also alive and well. Bribery, though on the decrease, is still rampant; and I have heard that for many policemen a few dollars worth of Rand, or even some fast food, can get you out of a fine.
Anyway, not to end on a down note, but those are some of my thoughts so far on South Africa. Overall, when anyone asks me what I think of South Africa, I say it is beautiful, and that's true. The countryside is impressive, but beyond that, the attitude and friendliness and perseverance of the people is beautiful, and they have given me a very warm welcome. It has problems, certainly, but one gets the impression that with lots of bumbling en route, South Africa is on its way forward. I am very happy to be here. Funny side note: I picked up an old South African cookbook yesterday and found a recipe that called for giraffe. Never seen that before! Thanks for reading--I know it was incredibly long! Johanna
Monday marked the third week anniversary of my arrival in South Africa, and so I wanted share some of my thoughts on the country and culture that go deeper than simply saying they drive on the left side of the road. I guess I should add the caveat here that all the opinions here are mine, and are not intended to give anyone offense--I still have much to learn about this country. Also, let me say that I have been very warmly welcomed here, and have yet to meet a South African that I don't like!
South Africa, like many countries in developing parts of the world, is filled with contrasts and paradoxes. There is the structure of the nation itself: in many ways, modern South Africa is still a young country trying to define itself, its government, and its place in the world, although the prestige and global recognition brought about by hosting the 2010 World Cup served as a sort of worldwide acknowledgement of South Africa's coming of age. Apartheid seems light years away, though in truth it was only dismantled in 1993, and non-whites were only allowed to vote beginning in 1994.
I have not seen any racism here, though discrimination in favor of African-owned and other non-white owned companies exists in the business world through the Black Economic Empowerment policy. Overall, it is incredible how far South Africa has come in so short a time--it's difficult for me to imagine that some of the young African men and women who are my friends at the student house lived much of their childhood under Apartheid.
Yet South Africa also has an old consciousness. Underneath the modernity, industrialization, and westernization, it is still Africa. Many black South Africans both in townships and in town still identify themselves by their tribal background, and the diversity of tribal languages is alive and well. It seems that everywhere you go, a different African language is being spoken, which leads to many South Africans knowing a huge number of languages. One girl in my student house speaks and understands ten languages, including English, Afrikaans, Sepedi, Sisotho, and Zulu, to name a few (and, I'm sure, to spell them incorrectly--please excuse the phonetics!). But I guess that is to be expected in a country where the national anthem alone has lyrics in five languages! Everyone speaks English, and some of them speak it with an accent that is much purer and more dignified than mine will ever be, I'm sure.
Amongst many white South Africans (and maybe black Africans, but I can't speak from personal experience), both of English and Afrikaans descent, there seems to be a strong attraction to pioneering roots. Biltong, a dried meat jerky now usually made from beef, but originally from beef, remains a favorite snack. Camping out in the bush is a favorite weekend activity, and small three-wheeled trailers are available to rent especially for this purpose. Even the tradition of braai--the Afrikaans word for barbecue--is drawn heavily, I think, from the days of hunting big animals out in the bush. In this respect, a sector of the white South African population seems closer in spirit to the Australians than to anyone else.
Yet, despite its progress and its leadership of Africa in many realms, South Africa faces great challenges. Poverty is obvious in shanty towns and beggars, but more subtle in other ways. In the mornings the sides of the highways and streets are covered with streams of men and women coming in to Pretoria by bus, taxi, and foot from townships such as Mamelodi, where the Viva Village is located. The women, wearing skirts and colorful head wraps or green or blue uniforms go in to work as cooks, cleaners, and housekeepers in Pretoria, where most of the middle-class homes have some sort of domestic help. Sometimes these women stay for years and help raise the children, becoming nearly part of the family. (I have mentioned several times that at home I cleaned houses once a week to make money, and no matter whether I was speaking with African or white students at the student house or to people living in Mamelodi, people have been very surprised. There are huge divides in living standards in South African, and the resulting social stratification means that a girl in the middle class--especially a white girl--does not clean houses for other people to make extra money. That I have done so struck most of my listeners as highly unusual.) Men frequently work at jobs that no longer exist in America by serving as gas station attendants, or giving parking direction to and then watching over cars in parking lots for tips.
I believe that fear also plays a greater part of many peoples' lives in South Africa. There are two main fears; the fear of crime, and the fear of HIV/AIDS. Frequently combining these two, of course, is sexual violence, of which South Africa's rating is one of the highest worldwide, especially when it comes to crimes against children. Many of the stories I have heard are so horrific they are difficult to believe. In any case, according to Wikipedia, the average South African woman is more likely to be raped than to complete secondary school, and only one in nine rapes is reported. Living in townships with absentee fathers and husbands (or worse: fathers, husbands, and relatives who commit the crimes) and no backup finances for flight or for medical treatment leaves women and children incredibly vulnerable. The societal implications of this are huge--it infects innocent people with fatal AIDS, makes domestic violence seem normal, and destroys trust in family relationships. Funeral services of one sort or another are probably the fourth most popular businesses in the townships, right after food stands, hair salons, and cell phone minutes, and it seems everyone knows someone--or many people--who have died because of AIDS. Meanwhile in wealthy neighborhoods, every house has compound-like walls topped with barbed wire, electric fences, and signs announcing their subscription to 24-hour armed response guard service. Frequently they also have a large dog, such as a German shepherd, for protection, and a smaller, yippy dog, such as a terrier or something, to wake the larger dog up! Crime in the form of corruption is also alive and well. Bribery, though on the decrease, is still rampant; and I have heard that for many policemen a few dollars worth of Rand, or even some fast food, can get you out of a fine.
Anyway, not to end on a down note, but those are some of my thoughts so far on South Africa. Overall, when anyone asks me what I think of South Africa, I say it is beautiful, and that's true. The countryside is impressive, but beyond that, the attitude and friendliness and perseverance of the people is beautiful, and they have given me a very warm welcome. It has problems, certainly, but one gets the impression that with lots of bumbling en route, South Africa is on its way forward. I am very happy to be here. Funny side note: I picked up an old South African cookbook yesterday and found a recipe that called for giraffe. Never seen that before! Thanks for reading--I know it was incredibly long! Johanna
No comments:
Post a Comment