“Three generations of white South African men were bound together at that table. Vermuelen was the first generation. He defined Africa, made it safe for Basson to defile. I was the last generation, the last to grow up in segregated neighborhoods. Between us was the silent photograph of Wouter Basson. Like a distant father, Basson was absent at the dining table.” – Henk Rossouw (Hole in the White ‘Hood). Also Mahmood Mamdani on Bantu Education at UCT, Gael Reagon on sisterhood, Binyavanga Wainaina on dis-covering Kenya, Gaston Zossou on African intellectuals and more…
Cover:
Strange Fruit by Lewis Allen
KwaNobuhle Overcast by Ayanda Billie (Deep South, 2019)
KwaNobuhle Overcast is a book of vivid observations of Billie’s community 20 years into South Africa’s democracy.
It describes an inhospitable and sometimes callous KwaNobuhle, its spirit worn away by the harsh toll of survival and political betrayal. The poet remains rooted, borne up by love, family, jazz music, and a stubborn belief in humanity.