The pseudo-realities of power
It is imperative to discern between reality and the spurious yet compelling versions of it offered by ruling classes completely uninterested in creating a free and just society.
Modi’s war on dissenting media in India
Aiming to control the national narratives by curtailing divergent voices, the government is brazenly and aggressively targeting the independent press and social media.
The nature of systematic corruption
Instead of reorganising the foundations of the country to create a democratic socialist alternative, the ANC prioritised developing a Black capitalist class and political elite.
Cartoon | No magic potion
In this week’s cartoon, the French courts set a fine example by convicting former president Nicolas Sarkozy of corruption and sentencing him to three years in jail.
Long Read | Sinclair Beiles and the Beat Generation
The enduring relationship between the ‘wandering poet’ from South Africa and peers such as William S Burroughs is not widely known outside literary circles.
Editor's Pick
Working class to finance Eskom’s privatisation
Eskom’s proposed new tariff structure will see working and middle-class consumers pay more for electricity than bigger consumers, while private capital benefits from basic service provision.
The growing migrant crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Migrants have been getting stuck in the Balkan country for the past three years as they attempt to reach Croatia, the new gateway to Europe, but the EU is failing to provide for those living in limbo.
Soul Jah Love’s life of multitudes
The late Zimdancehall musician was part of a generation of originators who, from the Jamaican idiom and format, created a grammar of ghetto pain and resilience.
Apartheid cop gives nothing away on Ernest Dipale
Former Security Branch officer Nicolaas Deetlefs maintains he had nothing to do with the death of the 21-year-old activist, who was found hanged in his cell at John Vorster Square in 1982.
Healthcare workers laid off but strike back
Eastern Cape healthcare workers, supported by short-term staff, have shut clinics to protest against the health department’s decision not to renew Covid-19 contracts.
Part one | Sport and the climate crisis
Sport gives fans an escape from reality, but it cannot escape the reality of climate change. Not least, cyclones and water shortages threaten grounds and tournaments.
Podcasts
S4 Episode 6: Humourless in India | Me and Mama Afrika
The Modi regime detains an Indian comedian for a joke he didn’t tell as it clamps down on ‘dissent’. Why people share fake news. And the story of Miriam Makeba and the 1980s hit song Just the Two of Us.
S4 Episode 5: Workers under Covid-19 | Trauma today
Organising workers has always been a daunting job and Covid-19 has made it even more so. What can unions do? Also, with so many deaths during the pandemic, we look at how a nation mourns.
Mixtape 36: Bricks and mortar
In this mixtape, Charles Leonard plays songs about buildings, skyscrapers, houses, homes and the architects who design them.
News
The fall of Eastern Cape public schools
The provincial department has failed to spend its infrastructure budget for years and some schools are literally falling down. This is leading to a loss of learners, school closures, vandalism and robbery.
Fiscal responses must include human rights
In the fifth part of this month’s New Frame, New Economy forum, public finance specialist Zukiswa Kota explains why we need to bridge the gap between the rights of ordinary people and budgetary constraints.
India’s agrarian catastrophe and farmers’ rebellion
The origins of the farmer protests are rooted in the economic liberalisation of the 1990s, which pushed the agriculture sector into crisis, causing an epidemic of farmer suicides.
Let’s listen to heterodox economists for a change
In the fourth part of this month’s New Frame, New Economy forum, Seeraj Mohamed provides an alternative to Michael Sachs’ analysis of the trajectory of our economic policy.
New data destroy hope of any jobs ‘bounce back’
One million new job seekers trying to enter South Africa’s post-lockdown labour market have driven unemployment numbers to record levels.
Workers in national strike tell Mboweni to ‘Voetsek’
Several unions joined the general strike in South Africa on Wednesday to condemn what they expected from the annual budget announcement: austerity measures that would hurt their members.
SA needs frank talk and a robust social compact
In the third part of this month’s New Frame, New Economy forum, economist Seán Mfundza Muller gives historical context to Michael Sachs’ analysis of the country’s fiscal position.
‘How am I free if I still go to bed hungry?’
The triple threat of inequality, poverty and unemployment means more than 18 million South Africans depend on social grants to feed their families, try to find work and travel for healthcare.
The African Union needs a reality check
The continental body has been neither consistent nor effective in living up to its various charters and stated aspirations for promoting democracy, peace and good governance.
Features
New Books | How apartheid denied a Black golf champ
Sewsunker “Papwa” Sewgolum began playing golf with a syringa stick but went on to win the Dutch Open and several South African tournaments before the apartheid government banned him.
From the Archive | The life and death of Malcolm X
The revolutionary activist was gunned down in New York 56 years ago this week. His legacy and influence live on in the fight for dignity, equality and justice.
Cartoon | Bad joke
In an ominous forewarning of cuts to the civil service, Minister of Higher Education Blade Nzimande reveals that South Africa’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme will no longer fund nursing and teaching students.
New Books | Fighting for Black women’s rights
Activist and community organiser Joyce Piliso-Seroke fought overseas and at home in the struggle against apartheid, eventually joining the Commission for Gender Equality in 1999.
Photo Essay | A life measured in sugar cane
Migrant labourers in India’s Maharashtra state produce millions of tonnes of sugar through their back-breaking work, but they earn just enough to trap them in debt.
Culture
Tsitsi Dangarembga’s art and activism
The artist and activist elaborates on her work and the intricate, necessary relationship between her artistic production and political action in Zimbabwe.
February and the Red calendar
In Text Messages this week, Russian Marxist revolutionaries shared the view that the ‘gravediggers of capitalism’ were in the minority and ‘a Russian revolution could not and would not be socialist’.
Making meaning and art from forced migration
Serge Nitegeka’s new exhibition Lost and Found confronts the viewer with the problem of forced migration. A look at one art form demands that you look at the other. Only then is meaning glimpsed.
Book Review | A pan-African poetry of belonging
In his latest poetry collection, Sihle Ntuli’s acute observations of history and place show that belonging is layered, fraught with problems and often unharmonious.
Book Review | Quietly ordinary queer lives
In Memorial, Bryan Washington ignores the expectation for queer narratives to be only about the exceptional. Instead, his novel considers the multitude of small moments that make a life.
A UK music inquiry asks, is a stream a sale?
Three British unions give insight into the financial struggles of musicians who, because of the music industry’s obstinate refusal to adapt, do not earn much when their songs are streamed.
‘Jawwap!’ preserves Cape Malay history and memories
A new YouTube series delves into the wealth of stories that reside in the Cape Malay community, documenting the past for future generations and helping those who speak to heal.
Sport
Rugby is Siyanda Grey’s blessing – and curse
Rugby always found a way to reunite with Grey, no matter how much he tried to run away. But, in the end, the sport that gave him so much also took his arm. Now, he is fighting to reclaim all he has lost.
The making of football genius Themba Zwane
From being overlooked in the amateur ranks to having to adapt quickly to playing football for Sundowns and being compared to Doctor Khumalo, Zwane’s rise has been as unpredictable as his game.
Olusoji Fasuba’s journey from athletics to the navy
Africa’s fastest man has had an interesting career path since hanging up his spikes. The Nigerian, who holds the continent’s 100m record, explains why he left athletics at 27 for Britain’s Royal Navy.
Part two | Sport and the climate crisis
In the second of a two-part series, the focus is on what sport can do to reduce its footprint, whether it’s changing the way stadiums are built or the food that is served to fans.
Sharks lay a Roc-solid foundation
The Durban rugby franchise’s chief executive discusses the benefits of their move to Europe, Siya Kolisi’s arrival and the rocks under the chairs of the 2021 academy intake.
Mzimasi Mnguni, a genius of South African boxing
The trainer, promoter and manager produced many world champions in a sport he got into ‘by accident’. Those who knew him tell of his passion and the role he played in the anti-apartheid movement.
Bridgitte Hartley’s undimmed Olympic dream
The Olympic medalist has begun planning a life beyond canoeing but wants to tick off a few more achievements before she retires, even if some are beyond her control.
Andisiwe Mgcoyi, the bulldozer who paved the way
The Banyana Banyana striker’s exploits in Europe have changed perceptions and opened doors for many South African footballers, who are now cropping up in the best women’s leagues overseas.
The psychologist helping athletes retire
Sports psychologist Kirsten van Heerden, who represented South Africa in swimming at the Commonwealth Games, focuses on athletes’ mental health and life after sport.
Editorial and Analysis
Traditional Courts Bill denies democratic rights
A fabricated idea of tradition legitimates the way in which the bill enforces subordination to traditional courts, with no possibility to opt out.
Ramaphosa’s shrouded privatisation plans
In an economy bleeding quality jobs, President Cyril Ramaphosa has once again used his state of the nation address to promote neoliberal economic plans that will not benefit the working class.
Motshekga and language that authorises rape culture
The minister of basic education’s recent statements about rape, civilisation and sophistication need to be considered in ways that take the makings of culture and function of language seriously.