Columnists

The historical legacy of Haitian rebellion in the political imagination of revolutionaries in Africa, the diaspora, and across the world cuts to core of the meaning emancipation. But also what it means to deal with the harshest realities of…

Most of us are aware of the fact that homosexuality was thought of as immoral and even categorised as a mental illness until some point in the 1900s, but it may come as a surprise that a well-known and respected college in South Africa is…

The decolonisation debate that has captured the lecture halls at some of our universities raises once again some fundamental questions about how we interpret our history, who has authority on these acts of interpretation, and what…

When someone comes forward with an allegation of sexual assault, harassment, or rape, we as a society need to believe them from the outset. All too often we forget that rape is in fact the crime. Reporting it isn’t. But we shame the…

I make it a point to tell anyone I date that I once had a partner that died of AIDS. So many loved ones have lost their lives because of the stigma attached to HIV, and I refuse to enter into a relationship with someone who carries those…

With the residents of Marievale appearing in the Pretoria High Court on Wednesday, 9 May to have their housing rights protected, TIM FISH HODGSON gives us a breakdown of the laws governing the military and housing evictions. How does the…

On Thursday, 3 May, members of a Marievale community, a community of approximately 600 people (150 families), approached the Pretoria High Court seeking the court’s protection of their housing rights and protection from moves to evict them…

When we gather in elitist spaces as social justice activists in the fight against patriarchy and gender based violence, capitalism and race, with the same aim and ideal of making a change yet we still enforce the same hindrances among each…

It has been hailed as “a new milestone”, “a historic occasion” and a “roadmap to peace”. But this is not the first political salvo between North and South Korea with the goal of complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, and it…

Arising out of the discussions at a recent workshop organised by the Muslim Personal Law (MPL) Network, it was clear that Muslims in South Africa, like other non-Christian communities, continue to remain in a precarious position regarding…

Debating justice in the Muslim family, a recent workshop organised by the Muslim Personal Law (MPL) Network at the University of Cape Town (UCT) highlighted the current legal practice, lived experience, and ethical challenges of Muslim…

“Show me rape-culture” - this is one of thousands of comments we have heard from students on campus. These comments are quite disheartening when they come from students who are in an institution of higher learning and ought to be critical…

South Africa, is a country that is inhibited by ghosts trying to find their homes and it is a country that knows no justice. History continues to socialise us to the space that it’s okay for Black women to keep dying and mama Nomzamo knows…

The label “Hottentot Venus” continues to haunt our memory of Sara Baartman. This moniker, used in Jean Reaux’s posters to advertise the exhibit of Sara, may have been repudiated by renowned scholars such as Pumla Dineo Gqola, Zine Magubane,…

The emergence of the campaign and associated political rhetoric under the banner of “Radical Economic Transformation” (RET) devolved from the Zuma administration. Over the course of 2017, RET generated intense media debate and inquiry. It…

On 6 December, the Council of the University Currently Known As Rhodes (UCKAR) publicly announced that it would not be changing the institution’s name, citing financial constraints and limited resources. This decision was actually made on…

Naledi Yaziyo writes about the thrill and threat of Facebook and the curated online persona. I love the intimacy of Facebook. I love it when my friends write on my wall or tag me in pictures or mention me in their status updates. I love the…

Graduation ceremonies are meant to mark the start of a new chapter where degrees equal opportunities. But entrenched structures of privilege mean that graduates often take very different paths after they step off the stage. Sumaya Hendricks…

In a letter to deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa, Gaopalelwe Phalaetsile reflects on the ways in which *womxn end up as collateral damage when men wage political wars. I imagine it’s tough to campaign to be the president of the country. Many…

Society hates when *womxn have power, especially over our sexuality and our bodies. Patriarchy determines the terms and conditions of sex for womxn. When we challenge patriarchy and reclaim our power, we are often labelled, taunted and…