Divided Histories and the Essence of a Unified Society

After two bumpy and discomforting flights to Cape Town—and I mean that literally due to cross winds that made our first flight that was hovering over Cape Town divert all the way back to our point of departure (Johannesburg)—I began to breathe sea level oxygen and feel the vibrant history, diversity and ambiance of Cape Town. After a day of settling in, watching a sunset at the waterfront bay and catching up on some course material reading—The Nature of Reconciliation and A Long Walk to Freedom—we began our first day of lectures on the hills of the University of Cape Town (UCT). Eager to further explore the course content I sat impatiently around seminar room 240 in order to engage with the topic of divided history of South Africa. Listening to Professor Elizabeth van Heyningen I quickly realized that the process of revealing and portraying the history of South Africa is a one that plays a crucial role on the process of reconciliation. In recognizing that history and the past lived experiences of a people is the basis for were the present currently stands, it is clear that the recognition of history plays a very important role to the present lives of all South Africans, but what is the history of this nation and how is it told? Having lived in a state of severe segregation in between races it is not a surprise that the history of South Africa is one that is has far too often been divided in its portrayal. The history of native black Africans residing for thousands of years in this land to the history of colonization and Dutch and British struggles to the history of Malay and Indian slaves the history of South Africa is extensive in its diversity.

In the process of reconciliation—within the South African context—there is a very important process of recollecting and unifying the history in order to create a more unified society within the present. In seeing how the history of blacks as well Afrikaners intermingled within one another I began to question the present and how effective acknowledging the divided history has been in terms of creating a more unified society.

Reconciling the past and constantly striving to create a culture and national community around the notion of unification and equality, I was left with a difficult internal process on deciphering where South Africans currently stand around the idea of a unified society. As scholars and students engaged in the stuffy of reconciliation and diversity, it is hard to find a truth or one answer but I was left with a sense of optimism after visiting the area of Bo-Kapp the following day (Tuesday 19th). Bo-Kapp is within the heart of the city of Cape Town as well as the central area were freed-slave populations resided in the 1830 after slavery was abolished. Walking in between hills of streets that paint a structure for the frenzy of vibrant and bright colored houses we began our journey by visiting the very first Mosque built in Cape Town. Sitting on the floor of a beautifully and pristine carpet surrounded by the energy of history and faith, I listened attentively to the story and history of Indian and Malay slaves in Cape Town and South Africa. While listening to dates as well as rich stories of a community exploited for their labor, I began to realize how the concept of a unified society is centralized…within the essence and beauty of inclusivity within a highly diverse community as seen not only South Africa but throughout the world. Through the experiential pedagogy within the program I am able to see how individuals from very diverse personal identities view how they fit into the mass of the society. With the gruesome history of apartheid and racism that built created a space for extreme oppression for people of color, I hold a sense of optimism as people being to see their identities for who they are but more importantly as being South Africans.