Johannesburg – On Thursday, 27th July 2017, the Steve Biko Foundation will host a FrankTalk dialogue titled, “40 Years Since Biko: Overcoming The Challenges In Township Communities”, at Uncle Tom’s Community Centre in Orlando West, Soweto.
Titled after the pseudonym under which Steve Biko wrote, FrankTalk is a non-partisan platform designed to bring together South Africans from all walks of life to reflect collectively on the state of our democracy.
South Africa’s townships are relics of colonial domination and apartheid. The term ‘township’ refers to the underdeveloped, urban living areas that were established for Black South Africans.
Townships are essentially a construct of racial segregation, its architecture (squashed and small) sets a tone designed not to inspire. It has been many years since the advent of a democratic government yet the gaps between predominately white suburbs and townships remain all too evident and the spatial inequalities assembled by the apartheid regime endure.
Youth in post-apartheid South African townships face both similar and dissimilar challenges to their predecessors who lived in apartheid South Africa. These challenges include: high unemployment, poor access to basic services, structural inequality, patriarchy, limited access to quality education, poor approach to civic engagement, and institutionalized racism to name a few.
In an effort to address some of the persisting challenges experienced in South Africa’s townships, the government has introduced a number of policies and interventions to try and alleviate these.
The upcoming dialogue will look into what still needs to be done to address the critical challenges faced by township communities. The Steve Biko Foundation will host a 2hrs long moderated dialogue between individuals who stay in the township, have been involved in township activism, and have reflected or written on experience of life in the township.
Details of the Exhibition are as follows:
DATE: Thursday, 27 July 2017
VENUE: Uncle Tom’s Community Centre 8288 Maseko Street, Orlando West, Soweto
TIME: 16:30 for 17:00
PANEL: Dr Trevor Ngwane, Community Activist; Ms Zandi Radebe, Soweto Women’s Forum
For media enquiries and interviews regarding the dialogue kindly contact Steve Biko Foundation’s Programmes Assistant, Lehlogonolo Shakoane on 082 214 8766 or via email: lshakoane@sbf.org.za.
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About the Steve Biko Foundation
The Steve Biko Foundation is a community development organization inspired by the legacy of Bantu Stephen Biko. The Foundation was established in 1998 and is dedicated to promoting the intangible aspects of development, namely identity, culture and values; the issues that speak to the soul of a nation.
The Foundation aims to intensify its efforts to strengthen democracy by championing dialogue, scholarship and programmes on the relationship between identity, agency, citizenship and social action.
The Foundation’s programmes focus on:
Consciousness – Who am I?
Community – Making a societal contribution; and
Core Skills – Skills development programmes for young people.
Alongside SBF’s public dialogue initiatives, interventions take place in the areas of Arts & Culture, Education, Sports & Enterprise Development. Much of this work takes place at the Steve Biko Centre in the Ginsberg Township of King William’s Town. In addition to training spaces, the Centre houses the Steve Biko Museum, Archives, Library and Conferencing facilities.
For more information about the Steve Biko Foundation contact Thando Sipuye via email: tsipuye@sbf.org.za or call 011 403 0310.
Like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheSteveBikoFoundation/ and follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BikoFoundation.
Visit us on: www.sbf.org.za
