A salute to the boundary breakers
When someone who’s been part of your daily life for a long time, suddenly out of the blue and for no evident reason, starts telling you how extraordinary, amazing and completely irreplaceable you are, be wary: they’re probably about to dump you. South African women have learnt to set strong boundaries when they’re hailed as superheroes every year around this time, as politicians across the spectrum seek mileage from the historic Women’s March in Pretoria.
sahistory.org.za describes as a spectacular success the 1956 protest against laws that would further restrict the movement of black women in urban areas by extending the Pass Laws to them.
“Women from all parts of the country arrived in Pretoria, some from as far afield as Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. They then flocked to the Union Buildings in a determined yet orderly manner. Estimates of the number of women delegates ranged from 10,000 to 20,000, with FSAW claiming that it was the biggest demonstration yet held.”
Waves of violence and cruelty have shocked South Africans over the past year. Ordinary people going to the neighbourhood spaza shop, visiting a tavern to meet up with friends, or just walking home from work are in criminals’ sights,
It gives no pleasure to say that women have forever had to secondguess themselves when it comes to where, when and how they move around in public and private spaces. To fear being out on the streets at night, or in an entertainment venue, or just going to the shop, is not something one would wish on anyone and it’s become a reality for many South Africans.
The South African government’s theme for National Women’s Month 2022 is “Women’s Socio-Economic Rights and Empowerment: Building Back Better for Women’s Improved Resilience”.
In August 2021, Stats SA reported that close to half of black women (41%) were unemployed and so it’s appropriate that the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities focuses on entrepreneurship for the launch of this year’s Women’s Month. The official launch will take the form of a full day workshop on waste management and “identifying economic opportunities in the waste sector value chains for women, youth and persons with disabilities”.
Teachers, sport coaches, musicians and other artists, as well as community activists constantly create spaces for girls and boys, women and men, to develop the confidence and skills that help them reach beyond the boundaries their circumstances have set. In this edition, in one way or another, we feature some of those inspiring humans.