By Anjuli Maistry According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, almost half of the world’s forcibly displaced people are children. A number of factors lead to the migration of foreign children to South Africa. Some flee conflict and unrest, natural disaster or recruitment as child soldiers, while others leave their countries in the […]
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I am Team South Africa, not Team ANC, EFF or DA
By Ntombenhle Khathwane What happened during the State of the Nation Address hopefully serves as a catalyst to push us as a country to re-examine how our democracy works. To say that our democracy is in decline because of the events leading up to and including events on Thursday evening would be naïve of us. […]
Is psychology serving humanity?
By Suntosh Pillay Do we have the intellectual courage to ask what is “post” about “post-apartheid” South Africa? This question was, interestingly and perhaps not coincidently, raised at two separate conferences happening at the same time in Durban last year September. At the Steve Biko National Conference, Veli Mbhele raised this provocative and necessary question […]
Nietzsche, Heidegger and creativity
In the course of preparing for a doctoral seminar on Sigmund Freud, Friedrich Nietzsche and Martin Heidegger, I was struck, once again, by the creative thinking on the part of these epoch-making figures, as well as its implications for creativity. Freud’s creativity is evident, to mention only one thing, in the fact that, as far […]
The female state of the nation 2015
This state of the nation is one that asks you, for a few moments, to consider some information about the majority of South Africans. Some information about the biggest population group that is not a racial or religious group. This state of the nation asks “what is the problem” and “what can we do next”. […]
How to survive dinner party small talk
If you or anyone close to you has ever made the big move of relocating between the Cape and Gauteng you are probably aware of the stereotypes around their divergent social cultures. Residents of the northern twin cities, after moving south, often describe the social scene in their new home town as clique, and the […]
South Africa’s civil war option
There is something deeply troubling about highly intelligent, rational, and well-respected people contemplating the benefits of civil war. I have observed this at least twice in as many days on my Facebook newsfeed. While certainly not representative of a national mood — or, at least, I hope not — that many of my black friends […]
Global freedom in retreat?
Following the collapse of communism, Francis Fukuyama famously asserted that humankind was on the threshold of “the end of history”. By this, he meant that humanity’s sociocultural evolution was poised to resolve itself in a general acceptance of the principles of Western liberal democracy as the basis of government. This he spelled out in his […]
Imagine the Africa you desire
By Rachel Nyaradzo Adams Being a leadership development practitioner has allowed me to engage numerous profiles of current and aspiring African leaders — some who are already on their leadership path, and some who are still grappling with the potential and possibilities of their leadership journey. Being an advocate of the “leading through your strengths” […]
Poverty, inequality to blame for mayhem in Soweto
It is generally accepted that social unrest and other forms of instability are driven by multiple factors that have, for whatever reasons, been ignored for a long time. Poverty and unemployment are real and visible everywhere you go in the black townships. In such a depressing environment, all it needs is a spark to ignite […]
In defence of journalistic objectivity
The appearance in public of senior editorial members of the Independent media group in ANC garb has occasioned a vibrant if sometimes bitter debate about independence and partisanship. What set off a lively and sometimes-acrimonious debate was an article by Daily Maverick writer Marianne Thamm, who raised the idea of journalistic “objectivity”. She wrote: “The […]
Harfield Village: The bold and the befok
I moved to Harfield Village in April last year. For a little village that basically lies between two roads (Imam Haron and Kenilworth Road) this place has a lot of issues. During the time I’ve lived here I’ve witnessed two domestic violence assaults in the street while others walked by. The first, described here, was […]