Week 12

We have all learned that South Africa is known for having frequent power blackouts. I found it crazy how they categorize their black outs by stages depending on the lack of power they have for that specific day.
One of the greatest problems they have is they do not know how to predict these blackouts. The source of the problem is their lack of maintenance they have at the power plants. The demand in electricity has gone up and the country really needs to meet the needs of their people, even those in townships.

http://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-south-africa-electricity-20150312-story.html

Week 10: Service Projects

I'm incredibly excited to have gotten our service projects! My group is working with Egoli engineering. It makes the wait so much more exciting because there's something even bigger to look forward too now! Our job is to bring electricity to the rest of the township (3/4) who currently do not have electricity. Not having electricity is more than just not having any light; we have to think of the health implications that come with this problem as well. I'm very excited that this will bring tie in with public health as well. Currently Egoli engineering is providing portable electrical batteries to 1/4 of the township.

I found an article over the problem of electricity Africa faces and how the United States is trying to help. It focuses on the continent as a whole and the plans on providing at least 500 million Africans electricity by 2020, which technically isn't that far away when thinking about a problem this big. This article explains how not having electricity really takes a toll. The access to electricity simply would change everyone's life for the better.

http://www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com/economy/3855-electrify-africa-bringing-light-to-the-dark-continent

Week 9: Top 10 list

After going through the top 10 articles/videos comprised of from our class. I have learned so much from getting a better understanding and perspective on South Africa's history and apartheid system to the LBGT community to recreational activities to women's rights. This series of modules have been very interesting since we have all learned from our peers and have all gained insightful knowledge. Every article and video on this list is worthwhile reading and/or watching. From realizing that South Africa still has so much room to grow since poverty and gangs are still a major issue. My favorite of course has to be power and privilege definitions because these really go a long way into our vocabularies. As well as the bucket list, this makes me beyond happy that I will be seeing South Africa for myself and be experiencing a life changing journey. This makes me extremely excited to embark on our study aboard program. I cannot wait!

Week 8: Top 10 Stories

In no particular order here is my composition of top 10 stories shared by my peers: 

1. Josh's definitions on power and privilege. This list composes the correct terminology and I feel all of us should be aware of how we use certain words, especially while being in South Africa. 

2. Sarah's article over the school system and the effects on children.http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/21528586.2014.887917

3. Larisa's article over the Sharpeville Massacre. The impact it has on Africans and the apartheid system. This article gives a vivid description and goes well into detail over the significance of this massacre and the effects it ultimately had.http://web.archive.org/web/20050408025334/http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/misc/sharplle.html

4. Denise's video over gangs, race, and poverty. Although it is a lengthy video just watching 10-15 minutes gives you a whole new understanding coming especially from people who lived though this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoMl_G6rL9k

5. Ignacio's video over the gay community in South Africa. This is a really interesting video and the laws that protect them in South Africa.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-iw5tmKIPI

6. Josh's video that summarized South Africa's history, what we have covered in class and other useful information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqCKIUogn6E

7. Nestor's bucket list to visiting South Africa. This gives us a great depiction on the beautiful country we are going to visit and makes me extremely excited to go on adventures. http://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2013/03/18/ultimate-bucket-list-trip-south-africa/2/

8. Tiasha's article over crime and violence being so high in South Africa. I found it particularly interesting how only half of the cases make it to court. http://www.news24.com/Columnists/GuestColumn/Why-is-crime-and-violence-so-high-in-South-Africa-20140918

9. Denise's article over the role women played during this crucial time in South Africa. They led many organizations. http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?id=4667

10. Tiasha's article over mixed races. http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2009/06/who-are-the-cape-coloureds-of-south-africa/#.VRm1CvmPF8E

Week 7: Peer Reviews

This week I have read/viewed 2 different articles and watched 1 video suggested by my peers. I liked how we all were able to find very different articles as well as some of my peers searching for information I would have never thought to look for. Everyone's research is so different and important that I have learned so much. It is also such a fulfilling experience to be learning more and more about South Africa.

From Hashem's research I watched a the trailer for Invictus. The movie shows signs of tension after apartheid.  Ultimately, Mandela wanted to use the power of rugby, since everyone in South Africa is in love with the sport, to unite the country. With the power and perseverance of Mandela he is able to bring more unity to South Africa and change things for the better.

From Denise's research I read an article about the chicano movement. This was particularly interesting because I learned how the chicano movement was sparked by the civil rights movement. I had never heard of such thing or made the connection that it was a very fun fact to learn. This article talks how chicano's fought for the equal rights and obtained them along with current issues that are still in play for latinos/chicanos.

From Larisa's research I read a very interesting article about Nelson Mandela being viewed as a terrorist at one point. This article gave a lot of simplified facts about Mandela. Also talks on the misconception about Mandela fighting back with violence. I learned that Mandela co founded the paramilitary arm of the African National Congress which sabotaged political institutions. Despite this Mandela changed South Africa for the better but it still has a lot of room to grow. 

I saw how Sarah made a comment on Josh's video he shared and watched some of it and I agree with her that everyone should watch it, it's a great recap! 

Week 6: Indepedent research on South Africa

Generating my own research from topics we discussed in class that were not very clear to us, I found some really interesting videos and articles I would like to share with you guys.

First off, I found that there is a city in South Africa, Orania, where only Afrikaners live. I found this particularly interesting as how this is possible. In the video it says that the land is privately owned so I'm assuming this has to do with it's establishment. I wonder if any blacks have tried moving here or simply visiting. 

These are the links to an article and a video on Orania. 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-29475977

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYbRZhymD5A

We also spent quite some time talking about Winnie Mandela and how women's roles in apartheid and the civil right movement are not quite expressed nor talked about. I found the trailer to the movie and would love to watch it. Although reviews do say the film does not capture the role of Ms. Mandela correctly. 

Here is the link to the tailer and a little review on the film. 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2013/09/05/winnie-mandela/2711759/

A big topic I was interested in was post apartheid and how South Africa is today, especially Cape Town. Although I am still researching on this topic and trying to get a feeling of how the environment is over there I enjoyed reading this article. I thought it was rather interesting how the writer ended the article by referring the colored community to a litmus test. 

Here is the link to the article. 

http://latitude.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/15/in-south-africa-after-apartheid-colored-community-is-the-big-loser/

Selma and Long Walk to Freedom Analysis

This week we watched two films, Selma and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. While watching these films I took into consideration the atrocities of slavery in the United States and apartheid in South Africa. I really enjoyed both these movies because they truly depicted what was going on in both countries and did not try to sugar coat anything. It's crazy that something like this took place in our country, but I am thankful for men like Dr. King and Nelson Mandela for fighting for equality and not giving up. 

Both these films showed how dangerous it was to be a civil rights leader at this moment in life or simply just helping out black people in the worst case scenario could result in death. Even though apartheid is A LOT more recent than slavery, slavery itself is still in the U.S.'s recent history. It really amazes me how apartheid ended around the time I was born. Being only a 20-year old issue I am excited to hearing people's stories in South Africa and getting to listen to first hand experiences and visit historical places in the country. Having watched these films I have an idea of what happened in both countries so I will not be surprised when I hear the worst. Growing up I have always learned about MLK, but to finally see and really understand what happened in the U.S. is crazy because actual people were physically hurt. I cannot imagine the world this way. Mandela and King should never be forgotten for their courage and movements they led. 

Leadership.

Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela both were civil rights leaders during a crucial period. Both of these great men lead a way in creating an equal country in the United States and South Africa, respectively. MLK and Mandela were both brought up by attending religious schools throughout their youth. Their fights against inequality were similar as they were both trying to take down a white majority. The white majority in both countries were a powerful leading group. These men saw it unjust for this to occur therefore they both took the initiative to fight against it. MLK was more of a peaceful protester while Mandela eventually turned to violence. Both men were awarded with the Noble Peace Prize. 

 "I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." -Nelson Mandela 

This quote reflects the thoughts of both men. They both to me are brave men because they put their life at risk for the freedom and equality of all men which is something that they should be looked up to and never forgotten for. Their fight was not easy and although MLK did not have the chance to see a united America he fought his life and even lost it to his dream of unsegregated America. Mandela was able to bring South Africa out of apartheid even though it was not an easy thing to do. I'm sure they were afraid at points in their fights but they conquered that fear. MLK and Mandela had the voice and the initiative that many do not have instilled in them.  

South Africa's History

After this week's readings, my perspective of South Africa is completely different. I knew what apartheid was but did not know much about it. South Africa has an interesting history making the country so diverse. Since apartheid was so recent the country still has building up to do for the tension between race and culture is still in existence. The government and its people are still trying to build up the country and create new policies to make South Africa a better place.

I was really surprised by all the colonization that was made and between different settlers in South Africa. I did not know anything about this so it was really interesting in reading the history. It really took me by surprise how the Boers were so religiously inspired. They prayed before the Battle of Blood River which is where they defeated the Zulu warriors. Their victory reassured them that "white predominance over blacks is God's own will".

A challenge I see for the country is that apartheid is still so recent that race is a very touchy subject. With the older generation who lived through this they are going to be very sensitive about changes going on. With that being said the younger generation can be taught that this was wrong and they need to implement changes to their communities. As a strength they are very diverse so this will bring many opinions into place they just need to find a strong leader to organize everything which is something they do not have at the moment.

The top three sports in South Africa are cricket, soccer, and rugby. The way rugby is described to be to South Africans reminds me of how football is to Americans. If the their team wins its excitement over if they lose their is so much disappointment. Its really interesting how during apartheid rugby was known as the white mans sport and soccer was for colored people. Thing have changed however they are still trying to make the sport available to all people of South Africa. The Springboks is where more people of color play the game.

My question to Dr. Gilmour is what is the biggest change he has seen occur in South Africa.

The truth about who YOU REALLY are

After reading "Unpacking the Knapsack of Privilege" and "Who am I" I see myself differently. In the sense that due to our race, ethnicity and gender we are supposed to uphold a specific image to society. I do not believe it should be this way. As I do believe some of us have more privilege then others we should not let that define us.
In "Who am I" I found it super interesting how the author discussed when an individual is part of a dominant group or category he/she does not state it. For example a white student hardly every states they are white opposed to a Black or Hispanic student. I had never analyzed this but I have seen it happen around me. I believe someone that is outside of the norms states their position because it makes it easier for them to let others know they are not like most of the people around before others start judging them. Adding to being privileged by race or ethnicity we can also be privileged based on our sex. Men are usually seen to be able to do more than a woman can and that should not be the case. We should be seen as equals and have an equal life in everyday activities. White over black. Men over women. We need to break the stereotype.

The fact that really stood out to me was most variation is within not between "races".
This means that two people of the same race can be by far genetically different than two people of different races. I think this would come to a shock to people. How is that they can share more similarities with someone who looks nothing like them? This teaches not to judge a book by its cover and that race is really only skin deep. Once you analyze beyond someone's skin color there is more than meets the eye. We all need to learn to be considerate of others and not determine a person's life by their appearance.

Who am I?

My name is Elisa Benavides. I am originally from Edinburg, Texas which is in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV). The RGV is predominately hispanic needless to say I fell in love with Austin because of its diversity. I am a third year human biology pre-med major minoring in chemistry and sociology. Growing up I was the care taker. I love knowing people are okay and happy. As long as I could remember I have always wanted to do something in the medical field. I plan on becoming a pediatric oncologist. This sparks my project interest. Basically I would love to focus on anything dealing with kids and getting to know them and helping them out.