African filmmaking has been affected by histories of colonialism and imperialism, and in South Africa the effects of apartheid further complicate the politics of how people are represented in film. Over the last few decades, many African filmmakers have striven to...
communities
Ebola kills – Underdevelopment and poverty kill more
Sensational reporting on the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is spreading fear and stereotypes about the so-called "dark continent". The disease has killed over 1,500 people in West Africa this year. With decent health care facilities, access to clean water and...
“Sinkholes, Starvation and Suffering”: the Legacy of Coal Mining in South Africa? | by David Van Wyk
Even as South Africa marks the two-year anniversary of the Marikana massacre – which marked a decisive turning point for the country's platinum mining sector – extensive new research indicates that the coal mining industry poses a wide range of serious challenges of...
20 Years of democracy: The State of Gender
Free to do the heavy lifting: after 20 years of democracy South African women remain exploited, brutalized and devalued . Has 20 years of democracy given black rural and urban poor women land, housing, health, jobs, freedom of sexual exploitation, safety and...
20 years of democracy: not yet Uhuru
As we mark 20 years since the end of apartheid and the advent of democracy, there is a deep rupturing of the post-apartheid social consensus in the face of intensifying class struggle. The signals for its end are the Marikana massacre, the great mineworkers' strike...
Taking Politics beyond the Factory Seriously
by Richard Pithouse Numsa's's resolve to break with both the ANC and the authority that the SACP has tried to exert over the union movement carries the potential for a real political opening. The union's commitment to work with other struggles, including community...
Why Did The Heaven’s Not Darken? Fear and Loathing in Girl Killer SA
The life and death of Rene by Andre Marias This newspaper headline refers to the rape and murder of my niece Rene, 28 years ago. She was four years old at the time of her death on Xmas Eve, 1986. As is so often the case, she knew her killer and he was known to the...
Where is the EFF?: A brief account of the EFF’s existence thus far
'A giant is born,' said Julius Malema, 'the Commander-in-Chief' of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) at the confirmation of the party's registration in Pretoria on the 8th of October in 2013. There has been a veritable hurricane of responses following the birth of...

