This series of articles on Marlon Brando has been some of the easiest writing I’ve ever done. The words have just tumbled out. But this third instalment was a difficult piece to write. Finding the energy and inspiration to write amid the horror unfolding in Gaza has not been easy. Writing about an actor […]
Every time a man has contributed to the victory of the dignity of the spirit, every time a man has said no to an attempt to subjugate his fellows, I have felt solidarity with his act. – Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks, 1952 The ruthless assault on Gaza has sometimes been presented […]
Celebrating its 40-year existence, this year the African Literature Association (ALA) held its annual conference at the University of the Witwatersrand from April 9-13 under the theme, “Texts, modes and repertoires of living in and beyond the shadows of apartheid”. The association is one of the few institutions that primarily focuses on literature of […]
“Some say they are fighting for economic freedom – who is oppressing them economically? Who do they want economic freedom from?” South African President Jacob Zuma uttered these words in October last year. He was addressing a crowd of 500 people at the Mdantsane’s Nonzwakazi Primary School in the Eastern Cape. Naturally, his disingenuous diss was […]
“… There are too many idiots in this world. And having said it, I have the burden of proving it.” ― Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks Had Frantz Fanon lived to see the candidates in our upcoming general elections, he would have had very little trouble proving correct his pessimism about the […]