Separate but Equal. I Think NOT!

It has taken me over a week to write this post because every time I try to sit down and write I get excited and motivated. I become distracted by the endless opportunities available to me and I get stuck in my own thoughts. 

This past week has really opened my eyes. Even though the official policy of apartheid has not been in effect for many years, through our meetings and tours I've gathered that many of the standards put in place during that time have not yet changed. The government says they will get around to improving the communities  but, we've seen that there are some things that are not priorities quite yet. I've spoken a lot about the idea of Ubuntu in Cape Town but I have not yet touched on another important concept: dignity. At many of the sights we visited, people spoke about dignity. They said that it is something to be valued, taught, and owed to people. I started to think about what dignity actually meant and what it means to me. By definition, dignity means a proper sense of pride and self-respect. With that being said, here are some of the things that prohibit many of the citizens from the townships from attaining dignity in their homes and communities.

After visiting the Social Justice Coalition in Khayelitsha there are many things for me to think about especially after listening to Mandla speak. Seeing his passion and exposing the struggles of township life juxtaposed with the spirit of Ubuntu and community was definitely striking and honorable.

We learned that there are three main issues plaguing these citizens: crime, sanitation and housing. Although all these things do lead into each other individually they are pressing issues and together they should be intolerable.

With regards to crime, most people are in denial. They do not want to admit that this danger is a reality and this is especially true for gender based violence. Not only that but police officers are not adequately trained to respond to these gender based attacks and often ignore the problem instead of working toward solutions. Unfortunately, with the HIV/AIDS rate being the world's highest in Sough Africa, cases of sexual assault are becoming deadly years later. One challenge is that there  is no court set up specifically to handle cases regarding sexual assault or gender based violence and often times a case can take six years for it to be closed. This means that evidence is almost always lost or unable to be used IF any evidence was collected at all. There is a hushed tone regarding the approaches to sexual assault in Cape Town. The police officers are not admitting that this is such an issue and as the crime rate increases and more women are in danger the level of denial goes up. This is a comment on the government and public service addressing priority community needs. It is clearly not happening and people are suffering. AIDS is a huge concern in South Africa and allowing there to be increasingly high numbers of gender based attacks is in one way fueling the spread of this deadly disease. Also to turn away from crime as a police officer is despicable. There is not proper training for officers to deal with this issue but ignoring it is not the answer either. Serving people is not  a selective duty and ignoring the problem does not make it go away.

This is also the case with issues of sanitation in the townships. Many of us have never experienced more than a few nights without a clean working toilet. We know that at whatever time of day or night, we can safely and comfortably walk inside our homes to the bathroom, use the light and relieve ourselves in a safe, sanitary place. In many townships that is not the case. Many homes share one outside bathroom among ten homes. The bathrooms are sustained by a janitor who is paid little money and locked when nobody is present to keep a watchful eye. Which also means that if the bathroom is locked and nobody is there then you have to wait for someone to come back and let you in.

Imagine that it's the middle of the night and you need to use the bathroom. You are a woman and your husband needs to accompany you because it is unsafe for women to go out at night alone. You have a child and your husband wakes the child up to take him with you because you can't leave your child in the house by himself. The bathroom is not close so it is an ordeal to go all this way but you make it and then head home. Since you were up in the middle of the night, the boy oversleeps and is late to school. You rush to get him ready and because of all this, you are running late too.

That experience would  be typical for many people living in the townships. There would be lines to use the bathroom and it is never really clean. If they do not leave their homes to use the bathroom they use portable toilets which are then stored under their beds until they have time to empty them. This can be dangerous because the waste can lead to germs or diseases due to exposure. It is also unclean and in homes where your one room is your every room, the smell will fill up the space and leave it unbearable. In addition to that, there is very little running water in many of these areas leaving people to travel long distances to retrieve water to shower, cook, etc. For any of us who have experienced this for even one day I would challenge  you to think about how it would be if you had this experience every day with no hope of change. Here's my thing, we can all go on a trip and live in rustic conditions but because of our privilege we know this experience is only temporary and that gives us the motivation to "work through it". In the townships there is no light at the end and for many people this will be their lives and their children's' lives too which is daunting and disheartening. I would argue that these conditions are intolerable not just rustic and it makes me upset to travel into work each day and see the difficulties facing the community I serve but then at the end of the day I just get to go back home and be comfortable with my biggest worry being if the wi-fi works that day.

Although sanitation is a huge issue this is all exaggerated by the housing situation. In many townships the innermost areas is filled with hundreds of informal settlements which are basically shacks that are crowded with too many people and not enough resources. In the case of Khayelitsha, the congested set up of the township caused a horrific fire that left 4000 people without homes last month. Many families lost everything they had and they did not even have enough money to buy new school uniforms for their children. This may have been less severe if there were adequate materials to build homes and proper space for people to live. It's basically set up so if you walk out of your home then the next home is immediately in front of you. This contributes also to the spread of disease. Similar to the issues with home sanitation, where people live in such close proximity they are likely to be exposed to the same germs and bacteria and get sick. This is why TB has such a high prevalence in many townships. Even so, the medical issues in Cape Town are huge but access to care is not always available. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) are going into the townships to deliver testing and medications to those who otherwise would not receive care and at the same time they are spreading awareness about ways to stay healthy in these deplorable conditions. It was hard to hear about this lifestyle. Although Apartheid is over, it is clear to me that many people who were sent away during the period of segregation will never live an equal lifestyle again because of the challenges they face daily. 

After learning how much of an impact these three issues have on townships I left feeling like dignity was not even real. I was wondering how people could have a proper sense of self respect when everything their human rights are continuously violated and the government is not taking  a stand.  I kept thinking that dignity was a word made up by those who had it to tantalize others with things they could only dream of. It made me really conscious of how fortunate I am and also how important it is to get informed and take a stand. I believe that knowing about and issue and doing nothing is lazy and while I want to learn everything I can I also must take action and be a leader. I was also reminded that a great way to be a leader is to be a teacher and that exposing these issues to other people can be so powerful and meaningful since everyone's story deserves to be heard and recognized!

If you are inspired by these words, please contact me at Melissa.Lovitz@uconn.edu! The students from the  University of Connecticut  are here for work and serve and make a difference. We are doing so with our bodies and minds but also through fundraising. So far we have raised $125.00 to  help buy uniforms for the students who lost their belongings in the fires in Khayelitsha. If you are interested in supporting these communities I'd be happy to get you the necessary contact information!

Since I've been in Cape Town I've seen so much! Everything I'm seeing is definitely giving me a lot to think about. I know many of my peers are feeling challenged and disappointed but for me this is exhilarating.  I have an opportunity to work and serve and learn here! I am feeling like there is no limit to the amazing change that can be made, people I will meet, and experiences I want to have. This past weekend, we spent an hour just looking at the stars that's when I realized that no matter what experience I have, this is never going to feel real. Cape Town is mystifying. It captures your interests and then pulls you around enticing you to do everything and reminding you there is never enough time. The biggest challenge for me is accepting that there is always going to be an opportunity missed but that with that there will be hundreds of memories and experiences gained. This place is crazy dense with life and hope and history and to miss out on learning and would be the biggest mistake of my travels. I know I can make a difference and after hearing what Mandla said and experiencing my first week at my internship I am just amazed. There are definitely not enough words to explain my excitement but know this, I will not give up. My passion is growing and growing and I just cannot get down off this Cape Town high!