A Passion to Understand

Tuesday, 9 February 2010

Break the Chains.org

“news and discussion forum for supporters of political prisoners, prisoners of war, politicized social prisoners, and victims of police and state intimidation” – breakthechains.org

I was quite surprised to learn that there were still political prisoners from various liberation movements in US prisons and over time we've come to learn that many of the convictions were obtained on falsified charges. Break the Chains.org tackles the issues of political prisoners both in the US and around the world.

It was on the Break the Chains.org that I discovered this video on the book The War Before by Safiya Bukhari.

Laura Whitehorn narrates this introduction to Safiya’s book. Laura was an activist in the 1960s and she took part in various civil rights and anti-war movements. She had been a part of Students for a Democratic Society and went on to become a member of The Weather Underground. Laura spent fourteen years in prison on charges of conspiracy, destruction of government property and fraud and was released in 1999.

Laura Whitehorn sounds as fascinating as Safiya Bukhari and i will certainly be reading up on her next.

Monday, 8 February 2010

Black consciousness week

I am reading a book on the Black Panther Party in the US at the moment. I knew very little about the Black power and Black consciousness movements in the US before and so in keeping with the spirit of this blog, I'll be posting various snippets of what I learn and research on the Internet while reading the book.

I'm barely 20 pages into the book The War Before by Safiya Bukhari and already I am fascinated. The links with the feminist struggle and the freedom struggle in South Africa are as clear as the unique difficulties and problems facing the Black Panther Party in the US and I'll keep you updated on what I learn.

Tuesday, 2 February 2010

This day in history: Apartheid Dismantled

Photo: Independent Newspapers Archive

“There are moments in history that become icons of their era, symbols of a shift in the world order. The liberation of Auschwitz, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the assassination of John F Kennedy, the liberation of Saigon, FW de Klerk's address to parliament 20 years ago this coming week” - IOL

I can barely believe that it was twenty years ago today that the then-President of South Africa gave the speech which effectively dismantled Apartheid. I was sixteen and in my last year of school and I can remember that huge feeling inside as we witnessed the end of an era. On February 2, 1990 FW de Klerk unbanned the African National Congress and 9 days later Nelson Mandela was released from prison after being incarcerated for 27 years.

South Africa is just one small country amongst many that had right-wing totalitarian regimes in the past but the specific oppression of people of colour in favour of a white conservative government meant that South Africa's struggle became a global symbol for the fight against racism, oppression and domination.

Mr de Klerk, I cannot thank you enough for changing my world and for making me proud to say that I am South African. I cannot even begin to explain how your bravery and your actions, together with those of Nelson Mandela, shaped my mind and made me realise that we need to carry the struggle worldwide and fight against evil in this world. Thank you.

You can find out more about this momentous day by clicking the links below:

IOL photo gallery on the events of February 1990

FW de Klerk reflects on reaching the decision to release Mandela on this day 20 years ago

The day De Klerk changed course of history

De Klerk's speech changed our lives forever