Stanza is in a township of Pretoria called Mamelodi, Mamelodi East to be exact. This means, the clinic is about a 30 minute drive out of Pretoria proper, where I live. This drive is the most stressful part of my day due to: the herds of mini-bus taxi's who rule the road here (though not with any particular driving skills or courtesy,) the HUNDREDS of pedestrians lining the sidewalks and crossing the streets, the speed bumps every 100 meters or so (though the road is marked 70 km/hr), the beggers/sellers at the robots (traffic lights) knocking on the window and pushing me to buy bags of frozen juice, and unbearable heat in my non-air-conditioned car. However, the drive also allows me time to reflect and since during this I'm pulling away from my nice neighborhood in Pretoria, through the commercial center of Mamelodi, past the newer housing developments, and to the edge of the shanties of Mamelodi East where Stanza sits, the about of material on which to reflect is substantial.
While avoiding being presumptuous, I will guide your thoughts with the following anology: Mamelodi is to Pretoria as Soweto is to Johannesburg. Listen, Mamelodi is no Soweto but, then again, Pretoria is no Johannesburg either. So it works at least for those of you who are familiar with the establishment of Southwest Townships (SoWeTo) and the political history within them. Let me explain.
Mamelodi was established in 1953, just five years after the government of South Africa adopted Apartheid as official policy. (Clarification: Though racial segregation had been an colonial effort particularly since the arrival of the British in the early 1800s, the official policy of "Apartheid" did not begin until the 1948 election victory of the National Party.) Apartheid legislation ensued which would eventually include racial classification of all residents, deprivation of citizenship, forced removals, as well as a list of other progressively more horrific policies, and worse, ignoring of actions that went beyond policies.
Townships (like Mamelodi) were known as "group areas" and were places outside of urban centers (like Pretoria) designated strictly for Black residency. Townships, however, were founded as a solution to the Apartheid "problem" of having too many Black people in White areas, or at least areas where Whites wanted to be. However, these townships were a compromise of sorts and one which would ultimately prove to be a fatal to the Apartheid regime.
Actually, the government's ideal solution to this "problem" was much more extreme (yes. it is possible.) In accordance with the promises the National Party made during the election race, Apartheid dug its heals in the dirt almost immediately with the Bantu Authorities Act in 1951. This act aimed to set up "homelands" for the native population called "Bantustans." (I am still unclear as to whether this term was intentionally derogatory at the time or if it has become that as a result of the failure of these areas to prosper.) Basically, the goal was to move 100% of South African Blacks to these lands. In 1951, they depended entirely on the South African economy, but in 1959, the government stated they would be self-governing and independent. Those is positions of authority cited gracious and enlightened reasoning behind this structure, such as that it was the "Africans' land" and they should "rule" according to their "tradition and culture."
This rhetoric worked. To this day, I have had young South Africans tell me that the "idea" behind Apartheid really wasn't that bad: "'Apartheid' just means 'Separate,' Andrea. Look, they just wanted to set up separate places where Africans would live and whites would live. It made sense at the time, it just didn't work."
(This, um, 'fact' is usually given as an attempt to prove to me that America and the rest of the world's media has vastly misrepresented South African history and that as an American, I know nothing. I will take this opportunity to tell my South African readers that this conversation has happened at least 4 times since I've been here. It does deserve a place in the blog. Though I do agree with you that present day white consciousness in SA deserves its own entry, so I promise to discuss it further there.)
Though the rhetoric was as beautiful as it was when White America granted American Indians reservations, in reality, the Bantustan set-up was as ugly as it too. First of all, by deeming these Bantustans "sovereign nations" where Blacks were required to live based on their tribal identity, the government was able to strip Blacks of their South African citizenship and replacing it with that of the Bantustan. No other country recognized these nations' independence. Gracious and Enlightened? I don't think so. If you aren't yet convinced, how do you feel about total area of the Bantustans equated to 13% of the total country's land where 90% of the population was supposed to live? If I need to start discussing the quality of the land, let me know.
So millions of people were relocated to the poor, barren, rural Bantustans. However, even at their peak only about 50% of all native S Africans lived there. The rest persisted in the cities. As you can imagine, it was an impossible task to deport all those people! But more importantly, the cities depended on Black labor, Jo'burg is a mining town and, furthermore, what is the point of being a colonialist if you don't have cheap domestic labor? So they had a dilemma, a we-need-them-close-but-don't-want-too-close dilemma. And hence the urban townships were born.
Areas were designated for Black townships several miles outside of the city, preferably far enough away to forget about after the gardener left the house. Forced removals began. In Cape Town, District Six was vibrant neighborhood in the middle of the city which evacuated under the guise of a "plague outbreak" and its residents were dumped in Cape Flats, outside the city and out-of-sight. Officials also cited "housing regulations:" inspecting neighborhoods and saying that because of this-or-that, these houses were "unfit" for residence. These concerned officials closed the houses and shooed the occupants off to the designated group areas, where of course, generous officials overlooked the fact that these places were in squalor, making no move to correct it and letting the Blacks stay anyway. Mostly though, no justification was given because Apartheid was official policy. Within these townships, old neighbors were separated as areas were further segregated along tribal lines. (Answer: Greatest Success of Colonial Rule. Buzz! Answer: What is Divide and Conquer?)
Soweto is obviously the most famous of these townships. My Lonely Planet describes it as "...the biggest, most political, troubled and dynamic township" in the world. And it is probably true. If nothing else, Soweto provides an abbreviated journey through the much larger history of a much larger South Africa. While tourist certainly cheat themselves (not to mention South Africa) by getting their fill by taking a day-tour of Soweto before scooting off to Safari in Kruger, a single breath of Soweto air is full of more life and history than most places could dream of containing within their entirety.
The Soweto story remains core of and the symbol of the rise and fall of Apartheid. It begins, as described, with the relocation of Blacks from various parts and suburbs of Johannesburg to Soweto. As relocation intensified and immigrants moved to the city in search of work, poverty worsened while crowdedness increased. This lead to the emergence of its own culture and identity, followed by the inevitable policalisation of the township and its residents. From educated political leaders (like Nelson Mandela) to school children, resistance to apartheid and the fight for equality arose. With 1976 protests, came war (of sorts) and with war came global attention and eventually came the end of Apartheid and, well, peace.
Armed with even a minimal amount of knowledge of Apartheid and townships (above,) visiting a township like Soweto or Mamelodi is an experience that reaches beyond the present, beyond, even, your own existence. For example, just frustration I have as I start my 30 minute drive, reminds me that I am heading into a place intentionally distanced from White Pretoria. Then, I arrive at my destination: Stanza Bopope Community Health center, named for Johannes (Stanza) Bopape who was born and raised in the area in 1961 becoming a hero for the cause when he was tortured and murdered for his political activism by the Security Police. Everyday, something as simple as my trip to work carries me through the xenophobic motivations for Apartheid to the courage and unity it took to end it.
However, it is the life of Mamelodi, the ongoing activity and changing nature, that tell a story which can't be written in a history book. As I drive into Mamelodi, new low-cost, brick Reconstruction and Development houses line the streets yet East of the clinic, hundreds of shacks with tin roofs remain clustered together.
I see teenagers in school uniforms walking in front of a sign which says "Hungary? Come Eat Meet." Underneath "Safe Abortions" signs rest an individual wasting away, most likely from HIV/AIDS...Townships like Mamelodi and Soweto allow the naked eye to literally see humanity in a manner which can usually only be integrated and processed by the soul. The past and present and even the window to the future captivates and demonstrates the harm that comes from hate, greed and division as well as the progress inevitable with unity, determination, awareness and hope. It is all there, all the history, all the life and it is hard to miss.
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