Articles

This year, I celebrated Africa Day by sending WhatsApp messages to my friends in Senegal and in South Africa - I felt lonely being so far away. As I prepared for bed, I noticed a photo of myself. In the photo, I’m wearing a black and goal outfit that my friend, Ibou, made for me while I was in Senegal. The picture made me think about what it meant to be a White man born and raised in Africa - about where I actually belonged and didn't belong.

During South Africa’s apartheid era, having a child out of wedlock was considered a taboo. Such a child would thus face many roadblocks—particularly if she were black and female. This was what Thandeka Mazibuko had to overcome from a young age; her mother’s meager salary as a domestic worker made life even more challenging. “My village [Kwanyuswa] had not seen a medical doctor; therefore, I had no role models.