A struggle for freedom

Anytime we decide to do anything it always takes so long. The boys are worse than hoarding cats and are useless when it comes time to make decisions or do much productive. We all went out to one of the few clubs in PE, Belizzas. I think it's one of the most popular clubs in Port Elizabeth. It had American music blaring and was very Americanized. South African's are pretty conservative and that was seen with they way they danced. Boys and girls didn't really touch each other and danced very conservatively.
Saturday, Asa, Alyssa, and I took a walk along the beach looking at the waves and climbing on the rocks. Beautiful and unique coast.
Sunday we all woke up early in hopes of going to the famous flea markets. After walking for a couple of miles we were disappointed to find no flea market because of the earlier rains. Instead we did what we do best. Find good food and eat. Everyone seems to be on “SA time” and so going out to eat takes FOREVER because the service takes so long. We then went to a museum with an aquarium. and on our way back it started to pour so we stopped a an outdoor shopping area and saw a movie to wait the rain out.

Monday we had another Xhosa lecture from Rudy in the morning and then we were picked up by Radley our friend and tour guide who ushered us round all of Port Elizabeth. He showed us a famous hotel, where Mark Twain had been, the Bay from a beautiful view, the promise of a Nelson Mandela statue, and the current “largest” Mandela statue that’s only as tall as I am! There is so much artwork that expresses that pain and struggle of the indigenous culture and how far the people have come in just the past years from government oppression to freedom. There is such diverse wildlife in the area it’s really hard to believe. There are more animals per sq. kilometer than any other place on Earth because of the diverse Eco system.
Next, Radley took us on our journey into the townships. In the township, the story and struggle of Apartheid becomes evident. During the Apartheid, communities were blocked off from designated race areas. Blacks, Colored, and Whites. Even though there has been much effort to change and improve conditions, the evidence from the past different colored communities sticks out so clearly. Some areas just received hot water within the last 2 months. Some areas have no sort of hot water, plumbing, electricity, flooring, not even full roofs or walls, or even doors. These shacks are held together by rope and tarps. THOUSANDS of people live on top of each other in places that do not look suitable for even rats to live. Because it’s the rainy season, there’s water all over the place which becomes dangerous for the flooding, dampness inside the shacks and causes the conditions to be colder inside shacks. There also becomes a very high risk and increase in disease because of the still water. Especially since some people don’t have shoes and it’s so dirty and cold. The horrid conditions are inescapable. Seeing the townships was the most sobering and eye opening experience I could have been apart of. We were silent the entire time, struggling to take in and process what we were really seeing. To say that we are selfish, over privileged, unaware people is really an understatement. Going about our normal lives with no understanding or knowledge of what really is happening in our world is ignorant. Seeing and knowing, and not doing something about it is the real crime. The fact that these townships are 20 minutes from the main towns and many people in PZ are unaware about what is really happening just outside the city. Even with the devastating conditions so many people live in, people still see promise and hope since the new government, and think that thru time more change is possible. We went to the Red Location Museum named after the rust that forms on the tin roofs. It’s this incredible museum right in the middle of shacks. It was almost disturbing to see this million-dollar museum in the middle of such extreme poverty. It told stories about individual victims and leaders of the liberation movement and the massacres of the slaughtering of a whole community of people.
We’re leaning a lot about the Apartheid struggle and relocation of the Black people, and the abuse and torture they experienced. It’s really interesting because just 16 years ago this area was completely different, and to think that everything has changed and racism no longer exists in ignorant. Racism is now a crime here and if there’s any report of racism spoken or acted upon, then the crime can be punishable by jail. There’s still a lot of pain that people hold onto from the Apartheid. It’s not something widely talked about and a very sensitive subject but when we hear the stories by people who were directly involved and even sent to jail and persecuted for their involvement in the freedom and liberation movement, these stories become very real. Many actions of the Apartheid government relate to events in the holocaust and the violence and killings of the black people is unlike anything I had imagined. The fascist government of the National Parliament showed no mercy and would not have changed unless the people would have stood up. That's why Nelson Mandela is the biggest hero anyone knows here. People look to him as their Savior. In 1994 When Mandela became president, it was the FIRST democratic elections that took place in South Africa. EVER.
There are so many intricate elements that make up Apartheid and the struggle for freedom from the oppressive government. Hearing about these stories from individuals who lived thru it and experience this first hand is incredible.