Summary: Colour me South African

        The article "Colour me South Africa" focuses on the various racial dynamics in post-apartheid South Africa. Even post apartheid, many blacks remain psychologically scarred of Afrikaners' treatments. Many Afrikaners were brought up with the idea that blacks were inferior to whites, an idea that is still in the process of being edited. Since 1950, South Africa has been spilt into four groups: Whites, Asians/Indians, Coloureds, and blacks. And Although South Africa is now post-apartheid, racism is still a problem; however, it seems that in some cases blacks no longer are the victims. Past mistreatment has caused them to play the race card against whites and turn the tables on the past. But whites are still not so innocent in this case. Some still carry the thought that there should be separation between the groups.
 
        However, many whites feel like they have been stereotyped as racists and have no opportunity to leave this image. They are punished for the events of their ancestors. Many feel like they have lost all their power and have therefore lost interest in politics. Even before the ANC came to power, many whites began to leave South Africa, people that were needed such as doctors, teachers, and engineers.
   
       There is still a great amount of racial tension in South Africa. I believe the solution for the problem is well stated in the article that we cannot "fight racism with racism" and that we must "look at what is right and wrong [rather than] who belongs to what race." Luckily, race tensions are starting to improve with over half of South Africans stating that they have good hope for the future of all races. In order to strive for a peaceful future, racial tensions must be addressed.

Reading Summary: Social Anomie and Racial Segregation in SA

The article "Social Anomie and Racial Segregation in South Africa" by Denis Huschka and Steffen Mau gives us a deeper look into the sense of a lack of social regulation or integration in post-apartheid South Africa. The authors' premise is that, following apartheid, South Africa underwent huge social and institutional change and thus experienced increased anomie, or a "loss of general social orientation, the development of feelings of insecurity and marginalization...and the questioning of the legitimacy of core social values."

Basic Definition of Anomie: Emile Durkheim defines social anomie from a sociological perspective: when a society lacks social norms due to large social inequalities. Robert Merton adds a cultural element to the definition of anomie, and defines anomie as the inability of certain groups to attain socially accepted or valued goals.

Racial Integration: In post-apartheid South Africa, there has been political equality, but social inequalities still run rampant: there have been only slight improvements in education, job opportunities, and financial security. As a result, a new social hierarchy within the black population has emerged, due to unequal access to political and administrative power and material wealth. Thus, despite major political reforms, race continues to be the main divisive factor in South African society - blacks are the most socially disadvantaged.

The main take-away from this article is that political equality does not necessarily translate into social equality. For South Africa, full integration of social equality will take time, and anomie will continue to exist until integration in all areas of life (economic, social, political, educational, etc) are in effect. It takes every sub-group within a society to contribute to this unity. 

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!!!