Brittany's first post

I distinctly remember feeling overwhelmed with fatigue, excitement, and nerves on the 15 hour flight from New York to Johannesburg.  From the sky, New England had a dull coloration of white and brown.  As we approached the African continent I was instantly energized by the green fertile land below.  It appeared to be a continent with so much possibility and history, and both have proven true.

I have embarked on a journey with the possibility of gut wrenching experiences, lifelong international friendships, personal growth and ideological development.  I have embraced the chance to dive into new languages, foods, customs, social problems and solutions.  The possibilities feel endless.

I love the continual opportunities for human connection here.  The people of Cape Town are thankful and optimistic.  Language has not been a barrier for me.  In fact, I am learning to speak Xhosa quite easily.  It is a beautiful and unique language.  Black South Africans are often very surprised when I speak Xhosa, and ask “so you have been here for a while?”  What a wonderful compliment.

I have also learned to never underestimate the power of non verbal communication.  You don’t need words to make someone feel welcome or uncomfortable.  You don’t need words to make someone smile.  You don’t need words to teach a lesson.  Thoughts are often impossible to predict but emotions are a universal language.

My favorite places in Cape Town are the mountains.  It was extremely rewarding to summit Lion’s Head and Table Mountain.  The clouds are cold and moist when they touch your skin.  Life feels balanced and centered while on top of the sturdy mountain ranges.  The world below looks vast but peaceful.  Altitude rejuvenates my inner being.  I come back after each hike more appreciative of how capable and strong my body is.

President Jacob Zuma is not liked by most people I meet.  He is the center of many jokes.  He was harshly criticized a year ago for sleeping with an HIV positive women and showering immediately after intercourse thinking that would prevent HIV transmission.  He is also ridiculed for having 3 wives, a divorce, a current engagement, and a new 4 month pregnant partner out of wedlock.  One of the radical black feminists at my internship calls him “dirty old man.”

My internship is with Gender Equity Unit (GEU) at the University of the Western Cape.  GEU has received the national human rights and democracy award for gender equality in 2007.  GEU is the only organization in the country for gender equity at a higher education institute.  I learn more about the struggle of South African women each day.  As my GEU advisor would say, “women are still fighting our own apartheid.”

When I look back on the last 3 weeks I recall having the greatest emotional response to Robben Island.  As an activist who is willing to seek arrest, I found myself wondering, “how far would I go to create social change.”  Then I realized that the political prisoners at Robben Island had no choice but to escalate their tactics against one of the most violent white patriarchal governments in history.   I was outraged that the political prisoners met such violent resistance while fighting for their basic human needs and rights.  I was also outraged that the trip to Robben Island was merely a light hearted tourist attraction for most.  On the boat ride back I overhead conversations about shopping for clothes or buying a new yacht.  My brain was focused on genocides, massacres, and ethnic cleansing taking place right now all over the world!  I wanted to scream, “Who cares about your yacht, people are dying!”  

We all have the power to stop these injustices from happening.  I refuse to let Palestine become another museum like Robben Island where tourists can revisit the atrocities of our past rather than face the atrocities at present.

Cape Town has a history of struggle and pain.  The communities here will never forget that, but they don’t dwell on it either.  They have been able to forgive when no apology was given, which has been hard for me to understand.

It is no surprise that I see Cape Town as a place of endless possibilities.  As a white and wealthy person I have access to more money, more resources and therefore more possibilities.  I would not be on this trip if it were not for those unearned advantages.   The unearned privilege I have due to my race and class is something I think about daily.  What does it mean to be a volunteer in South Africa?  How do I help the people here?  My role is to be a tourist at times but more importantly to listen and learn with a critical and open mind.  

As Lilla Watson, an aboriginal woman in Australia stressed, “If you have come to help me, you are wasting our time.  If you have come here because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”