I can say that my expectations for the Spring Break
excursion were met. I was excited at first, and didn't know exactly what to
expect. Like I said in my previous post, I was excited to learn more about
South African history and to go to Kruger National Park. Though I completely
enjoyed Kruger, I think my favorite part of the trip was visiting the museums
and the townships.
On Monday we visited the Apartheid Museum and
Constitution Hill. Constitution Hill was where many political activists were
held as prisoners. What struck me is that these activists weren't even arrested
for committing crimes or for being violent, their only crime was protesting an
oppressive regime. They were thrown into prison with people who were actually
violent and were completely taken advantage of by the corrupt officers who ran
the prison. We saw the cramped spaces that they were kept in...some of these
prison cells were probably no bigger than an “average size” bedroom and held
around 80 people. This lead to an outbreak of diseases since people had no
space and because the cells were not sanitary.
I enjoyed the Apartheid Museum because there was an
exhibit that taught about Nelson Mandela's entire life story. Learning about
him and his passion for fighting apartheid made me think about my passion for
social justice. Though the scenarios are quite different, I like to think that
I can relate my passion to Mandela because I too want to put an end to racist
institutions that keep white people in power. I also want to put an end to
sexist, homophobic, etc. institutions as well and educate people on oppressive
histories and policies within America. Like I keep on saying, South Africa is
similar to America...America pretty much had its own apartheid and it still
lingers within the political, economic, and social systems even today.
I was excited to visit the Hector Pietersen museum in
Soweto because of my interest in educational systems. Historically, classified
black and colored people were subjected to poor education systems while white
people received the best of the best. Hector Pietersen was one of the
classified black students who was protesting the Bantu education system. The
Bantu education system was for classified black people. It kept them segregated
and essentially aided in holding them behind their white counterparts. Hector
Pietersen was killed by police during these protests...he was only 13 years
old.
We went to Sharpeville, where the Sharpeville
massacre took place. According to our tour guide, Shapeville is where the
protests on carrying passbooks started. Classified black people were forced to
carry identification slips everywhere they went, even though they were citizens
of South Africa. This was just another way for the white oppressors of
apartheid to control classified black people. If classified black people were
caught without their passbook, they were arrested or became victims of police
brutality.
In South Africa song and dance was used as a form of
peaceful protest. This is what was happening in Sharpeville on the day of the
massacre. What happened was that one of the police officers at the protest
supposedly became threatened by the protester's singing and dancing. Though
these people were not carrying any weapons or committing any crimes, they were
seen as a threat. As a result, 69 people were shot dead in the back and 180
people were injured as they were fleeing from the police gun shots.
We also went to a Boy's and Girl's club in Soweto.
I'm not the biggest fan of kids, but I made connections with a few. One girl,
Nao, is 16 and studying Forensic Accounting. We bonded over discussing
corruption within politics and within the community of “bigwigs.” She hopes to
work to fight oppressive politicians...but first she needs to pass her matric
exams (similar to our SATs). There's no doubt in my mind that Nao will
accomplish her dreams.
Something that I thought was ironic was while we were
at the boy's and girl's club their donor who happens to be the CEO of Tupper
Ware (or something like that) and a white male elite, was visiting. So all of the kids were on all
fours scrubbing the floors, cleaning windows, cleaning the outside of the
building, and preparing food for his visit. My co-educators and I helped them
clean and prepare. I just found it strange that someone who naturally contributes
to capitalism, oppression, and poor environments simply by being the CEO
of Tupper Ware (which mind you is
plastic...aka very bad for the environment) was being praised. I understand
that he is their donor and that he funds the club, along with many other clubs
across the international globe...but he's literally a walking contradiction in
my eyes. He's also the definition of what “white savior complex” is. He does
work to “help” those in need (mainly people who are not classified as white),
but also does work that keeps them at a disadvantage. Though this type of work
is helping so many children I can't help but wonder if he doing this work
because he actually cares or because he just wants to make himself look good...
He didn't even stay at the club long enough to have
conversations with the kids...he just came, listened to them sing him a song,
he talked to a few people, ate the food that was prepared, and then left to
visit another club that he funds. I just think that he should've spent more time
there...I think that he should've been helping the kids prepare for the meal,
and I don't think that they should've had to stress about making the place look
spotless because they need his funding. Maybe I'm expecting too much from this
guy, but as someone who identifies as a radical feminist I couldn't help but
see this man as a walking contradiction with the white savior complex.
Kruger National park was awesome. I thoroughly
enjoyed the 8 hour ride it took to get there...I really like long car rides. I
find them to be so relaxing...I just pop my music in and chill. The first night
we went on a night safari ride. I couldn't believe my eyes when we saw two male
lions! They were absolutely beautiful and HUGE! We went on multiple safari
rides and saw 4 of the Big 5 (rhino, cheetah, buffalo, elephant, giraffe). The
only animals we didn't see were rhinos...but that's okay.
Overall this is going to be an experience I'll never
forget...and will most likely remain the best Spring Break ever.
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