Welcome to the 2012-2013 American University Alternative Break to South Africa Blog! (That was a mouthful!). Here you will find information regarding the trip and a host of activities, readings, service projects etc. that we're doing as preparation before we leave on December 27th!

So, what this trip is about? And why have we chosen to go to South Africa?

Our social justice theme focuses on gender, youth, and HIV/AIDS in post-apartheid  South Africa within the framework of Ubuntu.  Ubuntu is the philosophical principle that emphasizes the importance of human connectedness.

As Desmond Tutu explains, we can’t exist without one another: this is the motivating force behind this trip and a key philosophy of all alternative break trips. Structural injustice and human interconnectedness have tied contemporary issues related to gender, youth, and HIV/AIDS together within a larger struggle against race- and class-based discrimination in South Africa, requiring massive cooperation in the spirit of Ubuntu to generate a community response.  

The goal of this trip is to examine how South African-born organizations are addressing these three issues in hopes to be able to make connections to similar issues we face in the United States.

Check back often for more updates!!!