1,720,979 research outputs found
Smiling in the face of precarity: housing and eviction in Hangberg, South Africa
No full textMuch has been written about housing and eviction in South Africa, and they are issues present throughout most of South Africa's recent history. The demolition of places such as Sophiatown or District Six has become some of the most common imagery reflecting the brutality of apartheid South Africa. Yet, evictions and a lack of affordable housing, has been a common feature of the post-apartheid South African city as well. In Hangberg evictions and housing where part of the struggle of ordinary life. With a lack of affordable housing the people living in Hangberg had started to build houses of their own, which in turn made them targets for evictions. To build a house for yourself meant that you might risk violent reprisals from the state. Thus suffering was part of ordinary for the people I worked with. In the midst of suffering, however, they still aspired towards bettering their lives. I follow Chabal's (2009) argument that it is necessary to both recognise the ways in which people smile and suffer. This is to recognise and honour the ways in which people cope with their suffering. I argue that their smiling can be framed through the notion of agency and aspirations, and their suffering can be framed with the concept of precarity. Focusing on smiling and aspiring allows for an understanding of the capacity which people have to improve their own lives. It is in my opinion a tool for empowering people's voices and agency. Precarity allows us, on the other hand, to understand the multiplicity of constriction and oppression. Through an ethnographic study of housing and eviction in Hangberg, both precarity and aspirations are brought forward as processes shaping human existence. Through their aspirations the people I worked with smiled at the precarity they faced in their ordinary lives. They built houses they were proud of;; houses that they imagined would protect them from the sickness and suffering they experienced. Their houses were both a way of improving their lives, but also an attempt at creating a home in Hangberg and a sense of stability. I also reflect on the affect the distribution of precarity had on the people of Hangeberg as subjects of the state
Navigating development: the case of the non-profit documentary production company STEPS
No full textNon-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the Global South that work in development are said to operate autonomously from their governments yet their very existence depends largely on dominant bureaucratic bodies - mostly Northern influencers. Indeed, many Southern NGOs are dissatisfied with the sector due to these structural and institutional forces that can be exclusionary, dominating and restricting to their autonomy, affecting the organization's sustainability as leaders within their civil societies. I have ventured to explore how one Southern NGO contends with such an environment. Through conducting an ethnography on Social Transformation and Empowerment Projects (STEPS), a nonprofit documentary production company based in Cape Town, South Africa, I have explored how they navigate within these confines. I have investigated what tacit rules they adhere to in order to remain operational in the sector while also exploring what other rules they attempt to subvert in order to emancipate themselves from these structural forces. This dissertation investigates power struggles in line with Foucault's (1980) theoretical framing on how power exists everywhere and in everything. This study also employs Bourdieu's (1977) concept of habitus and Vigh's (2009) utilization of the concept of navigation as ways to gain a deeper introspection into how these particular practitioners negotiate their positionality within development. Overall, I argue that central to how STEPS navigate the terrain of a contentious development field rest primarily in key decision-makers within the organization. The nature of these practitioners as informed by their life histories has created dispositions that not only inform their agency as individuals but also transfer to their organization (culture, structure, vision, ideologies, ambition). Despite external structures that can also act as roadblocks or allies in actions, choices and agency, the habitus of these prominent figures within the organization are key to actions of the collective when presented with negative or positive structural forces
The Ladies of Long: how a group of non-gender normative youth construct their identity and perform gender
No full textThis body of text is the product of an ethnographic study, conducted on (or more appropriately, with) a particular group of non-gender normative persons, interrogating the question of how they construct their own identity and perform gender? I argue that one could not effectively take on this project without simultaneously interrogating the category it purports to describe, and thus this piece proves to be as much an ethnography on gender as an ethnography on doing gender ethnography. Therefore, what is presented here is a demonstration of the value of this ethnography to contribute to a greater body of knowledge as it generates a nuanced and practical relational understanding of these otherwise seemingly intangible and highly ideational concepts, ambiguously termed gender and identity. This work also interrogates and engages deeply with notions of sexuality, subjectivity, agency, and personhood, examining the relationship and validity between abstract theory and reality, as it is revealed through an analysis of the articulations and observations of these unique individuals. Furthermore, as this offers more than a nuanced understanding of gender and identity in these people's lives, but an understanding of gender that extends beyond the specific scope of this question, the findings presented here, offer monumental insight and opportunity to sift through the leading contemporary theories foregrounding gender studies specifically that of Judith Butler's, Performativity Theory. And finally, as this work is built on the foundation of a feminist objective epistemology, it will prove also to be an articulation of the importance of methodology, demonstrating the significance of a study's methodology to be parallel to its findings. But most importantly this text will provide an in-depth description and analysis of the meanings and makings of gender, sexuality, and personhood in the context of a very particular social world, demonstrating the surprisingly profound agency these persons creatively practice in the constitution of their selves
Aspiring to Citizenship: African Immigrant Youth and Civic Engagement in Cape Town, South Africa
Get PDFBased on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in the city of Cape Town over four months, this dissertation addresses the question how do African immigrant youth experience life and live as ‘citizens 'in Cape Town? African immigrant youth straddle multiple positions, localities and identities: insider, outsider, victim, perpetrator, dependent, independent, child, adult. This dissertation examines the various ways in which African immigrant youth in Cape Town activate citizenship and belonging through civic participation or engagement, often in the absence of formal citizenship. Contrary to claims of immigrant youth as inherently problematic, youth are actively deciding to be the change they want to see in the world surrounding them, looking backwards and forwards to determine their decision to participate in civic engagement in the present. This thesis posits that young people's notions of themselves and their aspirations (both individual and collective) impact not only their future life-goals and dreams, but can manifest and drive their current actions to embed themselves in their communities and contribute towards the betterment or improvement of these communities. Drawing from youth studies that highlight the individual agency of youth within the larger constraints in which they find themselves in, the dissertation looks at the everyday, informal and localised acts of civic participation, as well as the ways that African immigrant youth leverage institutions (higher education, community organisations) as bridges and platforms for social change. The research demonstrates that civic participation through community engagement allows African immigrant youth to dream and access citizenship and social adulthood, and become a part of society where they are recognised as contributing members
Social relations around a communal tap : an ethnography of conviviality in Imizamo Yethu, Cape Town
No full textIncludes bibliographical references.This dissertation is focused on the (re)configuration of social relations around a communal tap. It looks at the different ways in which fetching water from a communal tap brings life within an impoverished community in Cape Town, South Africa. I examine how the people of Imizamo Yethu who are located in a constrained and heavily populated geographical space, where movement and sociality are limited, take advantage of the tap space to (re)build relations through various social interactions. Water, one of the elements basic to human needs, activates hope in the midst of suffering, while stabilising residents’ uncertainties. During a four month ethnographic study of life within this community, I participated in and observed the daily practice of fetching water, and the interactions around one of the community’s taps. Building on the idea of water as a total social fact, and also conviviality as theoretical frame, I argue that water is as much a giver of life as it is a catalyst for social living. Water provides an opportunity for residents to meet, exchange stories, and seek survival strategies, further strengthening communal bonds. Through water and the social relations that it (re)configures, residents activate dignity
The art of Maquis: makeup and making up in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Get PDFThis story is about the art of maquis among women in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The thesis frames the art of maquis as a navigational technique through which women embody their aspirational self. Here, I conceptualize the art of maquis through the notions of makeup and making up. The women I worked with used makeup framed as a concept and a practice, where making up is considered the practice through which the art of maquis is performed. Here, the tools women employ to beautify their lives are discussed in terms of technologies of visibility and behavioural techniques such as flatter [to flatter]. This monograph examines how women constantly navigate opportunities by embodying their aspirations and intersubjectivity through an ethnographic analysis of makeup and making up practices in a maquis [local pub]. To navigating precarious conditions and the materiality of the contexts, the women I worked with used makeup for pragmatic reasons, often to access aspirations in the form of socio-economic capital (making up). Experts at the art of maquis (makeup and making up), these women use their bodily capital and technologies of visibility to attract and navigate opportunities in a world where they find themselves at the margins of global capitalism. Ultimately, focusing on eye and skin makeup, this ethnography of facial and behavioural adornment showcases how people aspire to be happy through technologies of visibility and the presentation of self in everyday life. The thesis suggests that studying adornment techniques from and through the maquis provides a nuanced way of theorizing the kaleidoscopic epistemologies informing gender constructions, contemporary beauty ideals and female agency in Ouagadougou
Rogue urban connections: an ethnography of trust and social relations in Observatory, Cape Town
No full textIt is important for present and future urban research to take into account the subtle dynamics and social relations at work in the city. There are alternative and beneficial forms of living together in the supposedly 'disordered' urban space, which are mobilised in order to function in a difficult, changing, and hopeful environment. It is especially pertinent to uncover the complex dynamics at work in everyday life in African cities, as they continue to undergo transformations. In the context of segregation, separation and uncertain futures people create and mobilise intricate ways of connecting to people and spaces in the city. In order to study the intricacies in a South African urban environment, this study examines how people use trust and distrust in a 'disorderly' urban space. I argue that beneficial social relations that are based on trust and distrust manifest in a liminal space, as is especially exemplified by 'strangers' in and of the environment (Simmel, [1908] 1971). Furthermore, I posit that there is a need to trust liminally and spatially in order to be able to function in an 'unruly', 'rogue' environment, specifically Observatory, Cape Town. This analysis focuses on five types of trust: personal, social, institutional, liminal, and spatial trust, and how they are mobilised in the suburb of Observatory, Cape Town. These forms of trust are paramount to functioning in a city, in which many people are unknown others with whom one needs to live alongside. In order to study this abstract concept, an endogenous anthropological methodology was used to observe how and why people use 'trust' in the 'unruly', liminal urban environment of Observatory. Ethnographic qualitative data-collection was vital to this project: namely participant-observation, interviews, open-ended discussions, and examination of what is said in popular media and discussion on the suburb. 'Walking' in the suburb provided a way to examine ethnographically how trust and distrust function on the everyday city streets. Furthermore, my positionality as a 'stranger' (Simmel, [1908] 1971) contributed positively in my study of liminality in Observatory, especially as an anthropological researcher. I conclude that there are beneficial forms and methods of trusting to be found in the liminal people, spaces, and situations in a city. Subtle and important forms of collectivity, agency, and autonomy are to be found in the 'disorder' of African cities
Cultivating suspicion: an ethnography of corporeal strategies deployed against vulnerability to crime in Observatory, Cape Town
No full textThis ethnographic study explores how people deal with suspicion and navigate the fear of crime in the Observatory suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. The study grapples with the question of how the neighbourhood watch, as a recently revived institution, operates. It analyses the institution and relationships within and around it as an alternative source of trust to the state in combatting crime and its wider impact on lived sociality in the suburb and, perhaps, beyond. The focus of the study lies in understanding the strategies people employ habitually in order to create a sense of security in a context where the anticipation of violence permeates various everyday routines. In analysing strategies of living through insecurities, I focus on examining material and highly visible security measures, such as patrol cars and barbed wires, and engage with the body as a site of social and political memory and struggle, while considering the roles it takes on in the face of perceived precariousness. This dissertation offers an insight in to how the body is deployed as an instrument or buffer to deal with insecurity and crime vulnerability. The quality of public life becomes compromised through embodied strategies of (in)security and vulnerability as employed by the neighbourhood watch. The capacity of a constantly perceived presence of criminal violence in shaping individual and institutional bodies and strategies constitutes the main focus of this study. While the study does not identify the roots of crime as is currently practice with related studies of crime in South Africa, it illuminates the engagement with its perceived presence and thus moves away from a fixed victim-perpetrator dichotomy that has dominated the public discourse
'Imfuno neeMbawelo': ambition, desire and aspiration in South African post-apartheid migration
Get PDFBased on fieldwork done in the city centre of Cape Town over two months, coupled with multiple conversations that stem as far back as 2011, this dissertation explores the spirit of ambition and desire, known in Xhosa as 'imfuno'. Articulated as a unit of study, I explore the concept of imfuno and how it manifests itself in the social lives of a group of migrant labourers in Cape Town, particularly in a post-apartheid South Africa loaded with personal expectations, wants and needs. Drawing on theoretical models of covert strategy, politics of suffering and dynamics of social change, this thesis postulates that people's notions of themselves, their aspirations and life-goals are not only interconnected, but also can become driving forces that allow them to withstand and negotiate denigrating socio-economic conditions. Using Cape Town as a site of study, existing as a microcosm for the legacy of apartheid and the history of separation at large in South Africa, the thesis elaborated on notions of space, and how through examining the construction of space, claims of belonging and alterity are created. The way in which my informants were aware of this spatial planning in the city, and were able to strategize around for the purpose of finding meaning and self-actualization, forms a thematic filament in this monograph. Throughout the discussion is the idea of existing in a social system that informants clearly acknowledge as oppressive in light of recent political shifts. Each of the four chapters elaborates of the multi-contextual presence of imfuno, and how it expands and contracts as social actors' expectations mutate as larger macro structures play a role. Like many other post-colonial monographs by anthropologists such as Bank(2011), this dissertation takes a observes and analyses 'classic' works in migration studies and argues for a fluid, constantly changing discourse around the migration and mobility field in anthropology
Struggling to become : youth and the search for respectability in Khayelitsha, Cape Town
No full textThis is a story about the struggle to become. In detailing the everyday lives of a group of young men from Khayelitsha, this story provides a context for (or entry point into) a wider discussion about a generation of youth who have been born into precarious social environments bereft of toeholds on the ladder to social adulthood. These youth must attempt to come of age and live respectable lives within a politically saturated predicament of bleak prospects and socio-economic exclusion. Yet this is not a story of despair, but one of aspiration. It is an ethnographic account of what Patrick Chabal refers to as ‘the politics of suffering and smiling’: a delineation of dream and drama (Gondola, 1999) amidst precarity. Despite exclusion from the realms of work and power these young men jettison despondence, drawing on association to partake in theatres of sociability that provide them with new contexts for social mobility. It is within these novel ‘hierarchies of being’ (Fuh, 2012) that they are able to position themselves as eminent social actors (i.e. the dream) by acquiring valuable social capital through strategic performances of ritual and repertoire (i.e. the drama). By presenting a detailed ethnographic description of the theatres of sociability in which these young men enact their incarnation of eminence, this dissertation contributes to an emerging perspective on the role of association in the social fantasies and possibilities of youth in precarious situations. In this regard the primary goal of this dissertation is to provide an optic into young people’s navigation of precarity, focusing on how they draw on association to reconfigure the geographies of exclusion and inclusion as they chart trajectories from social dereliction to psychosocial redemption
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