As my
semester in South Africa is coming to an end, I have had the opportunity to
reflect. There are many aspects of this culture
that were quite apparently foreign to me, there were some that took time to
grapple with, and yet there are still aspects that I still do not fully
understand. Some are surface level, and
some take meaningful contemplation for me to relate. Whichever aspect we analyze, South African
culture as it exists today is directly impacted by the imminent apartheid
legacy as well as the devastating poverty that plagues the nation. Some facets have been very hard for me to cope
with but I have thoroughly enjoyed exploring and discovering this vivacious nation.
A
pleasant cultural surprise for me coming to this country was that of body image
with in the African woman’s community.
For me, popular culture tells me that I shouldn’t be happy with my body
image because I do not fit the Barbie mannequin. America’s idea of plus size does not
correlate with South Africa’s. The
African woman takes pride in her body, regardless of the size, which I believe
is a lesson that American woman can learn from.
I have been asked questions about my weight, and been told that “PE has
made me fat!” At first, I was very
offended, but I have realized that this is just a compliment lost in
translation. These woman embrace and own themselves, and do not shy away from
the body image conversations. ***I think I still agree with this.
As a
business woman, another obvious difference for me was the organization of the
restaurant industry in South Africa. In
the four months that I have spent in Port Elizabeth, I have never eaten at a
restaurant in which the dining section was full. My first question was how does the company
pay overhead costs without business to sustain itself. Secondly, most restaurants seem to be
overstaffed. As I have worked in the
restaurant industry in the United States, I can attest that most restaurants
look to cut staff as soon as there is not the business to sustain it. I also really wonder about the income that
the wait-staff are able to make in a South African restaurant as the customary
gratuity policy is ten percent of a tab, where in the United States, comparable
service often warrants double this. For
a business minded person like myself, I am intrigued by the operational
organization of the restaurant industry how these industries function and
profit. The culture of South African
business seems to be operating under different goals than comparable American
companies.***** I don't even notice this anymore. I have a feeling that I will be overwhelmed when I go to an American restaurant again. I have gotten accustom to sitting, having a fat chat, not being doted over, and enjoying my time. There is something innately different about the culture of time here, and maybe less about the financial scope.
Another
noticeably different aspect of culture coming to South Africa was the visibility
of the nation’s poverty. As we have
spent time discussing, there is poverty in the United States, but it is not as
vast, visible, or crippling as it is in South Africa. At some times in the year, the unemployment
rate is as high as half of the nation at some point of the year! As a tourist from a first world nation, seeing
poverty manifest into homelessness and begging was a painful difference, and
had I trouble responding. I believe that
in South Africa, poverty has become a part of culture, because these visible
signs of poverty are things that every national and tourist has to cope with on
a daily basis. Whether South Africans
have grown immune to beggars and homeless people or not, the poverty litters
the landscape. **** Yip, still inescapable. Poverty consumes the nation. Some days I am blinded to it, and some days my heart strings break.
Yet
another noticeable difference that I first picked up on is the apparent need
for security. Beautiful, affluent
neighbourhoods across the nation are guarded by barbed wire and brick fences to
keep intruders away. The ADT Personal
and Atlas signs warn potential threats that a home is safely guarded. The memorable Once Upon a Time, a short story studied in our South African
Literature class, speaks to the trapping effect that this guarded culture has
evolved to because of this fear of danger.
As the walls get higher, not only is the family secluding themselves
from an outside world, but they are reinforcing a culture of fear to the
younger generation. I fear that upon
returning home, I will have a sense of non-protection without these extreme
precautions.***** I do miss green lawns, and parks with screaming kids, and people walking their dog. I do still notice the high gates, but I also have had some first hand experience proving their necessity. I do think people are often scared to leave their comforts, but I think I better understand the reasoning.
On a
deeper level, there are many aspects of South African culture that took me
months of grappling with to begin to understand. Beliefs, values, and thought patterns often
differ from my own because of the cultural lenses that we approach this world
with. The first of which would be the
seemingly ever present irrational fear of race on the part of the white
youth. As white foreigners, we have had
a unique opportunity to see the racial interactions of this country. We do not fully assimilate with either the
white South Africans and we cannot fully assimilate with the black South
Africans.***** Ya, so Ive lived with a white family, hung out with the colored hood, and worked the New Brighton community (oh and fell in love with an Indian boy). I still don't fit it anywhere perfectly, but I don't see myself as an outsider. Long ago, I quit saying stuff like "well, in America," or "that's different." My ill-fitting puzzle piece identity has become part of my make-up.
The
idolized view of this new nation declares that the “born free” generation is
colour-blind, and able to work cohesively in partnership. My experience with the white South African
youth says that much of the affluent population still harbors extreme fear of
the unknown. For instance, I have used
a kombi for transportation for the last four months. I have been told time and time again that
this is risky behavior because public transport is a dodgy business. In my time here, I have never felt unsafe or
insecure in taxi, and I believe that these irrational fears stem from
inexperience. Further, I have spent a bit
of time shopping in Norwich, the down town tundra-street mall. My Afrikaner friend warned me that he has
never even driven his car through that part of town because he is afraid that
he will get high jacked. Again, I
offered him to come with to see that there was nothing to fear, but he insisted
that he would not put himself in that “unpredictable” situation. I wonder when South Africa will outgrow this
culture of irrational fear and fully embrace Tutu’s ideal of Ubuntu.**** Well I have been fortunate enough to make a few more friends, and turns out that not everybody has irrational fears. Lots of people have never explored the other side of the train tracks, but not because they are afraid, just simply because they never have.
Another
aspect of South African culture that has really struck me was the function that
extended family plays in the township.
Largely, I have only been exposed to nuclear families raising children
as the norm. In South Africa, often
grandparents fulfil this role as childbearing happens at a younger age. Millions of babies are born out of wedlock, to
unexpecting parents who often do not have the financial ability to care for a
child. Grandmothers parent the
grandchild, while teaching the mother how best to be a parent. In coming here, I was frustrated with what I
saw as lack of responsibility. Since my
time in New Brighton paired with my Cape Town homestay, I have come to see that
because of poverty, this is just a structure that is feasible for
families. I also believe that as the
need for education becomes more readily accessible within the townships, young
couples will wait to start families until later in life.** *** Yip, see my last post about baby Jim.
One of the biggest differences that I have
noticed between my American culture and South African culture is found in the
workplace. At home, higher education is
vital if one wants to “succeed” in the workplace. My culture would differentiate a job, career,
and a profession by the level of intellectual skill which is needed to perform
such duties. Because of the apartheid
legacy in South Africa, entire generations of Africans are left without skills
gained from any higher education, preventing them from entering the
professional job market. According to Fiona Ross in Raw Life New Hope, “Most
workers were concentrated in the sector now designated ‘elementary occupations’
and that used to be referred to as unskilled or manual labor, and many worked
intermittently in the year, irregularly in the week or for fewer hours weekly
that qualified them to be registered for unemployment insurance,” (Ross,
106). That is, what my culture would
deem a “job,” is the majority of what South Africa deems “decent work.” I question how fulfilling I would find my own
life if I was trapped in this cycle of so-called decent work.**** I just had an argument about this the other day, but it really is a mute point. There can be no work without education, which has not been addressed. Also, PE is an industrializing economy. Production, not service. Americans don't value trades as PE does. It is something that I still grapple with.
The last underlying value that I have noticed
about South African culture is the role of justice in the township life. There is a clear mistrust in the corrupting
powers of the South African government, especially within the judicial system. Historical resentment of police officers
remains a powerful force in this culture.
Joleen Steyn Kotze, a senior political science lecturer, admits that
when she has an issue which warrants an authoritative figure, she is reluctant
to rely on the support of the police, as she would rather remedy the situation
on her own. The corruption of the
bureaucracy in this country just do not act as a deterrent for criminals. This scene of mistrust is also found within
the township with “mob-justice.” If a
wrong-doer is caught, the people take it upon themselves to seek justice rather
than relying on the system to enforce laws.
As someone foreign to this, I was very nervous that I would not have
some governing body that I could fully trust to ensure my safety.**** Corruption is a certain issue that plagues this nation. Just this weekend, a friend was asked to pay a bribe to get out of an unfair traffic violation. Its madness, but I wouldn't even bother to go to the police if I needed. Its more efficient, and often cheaper to seek help elsewhere.
****Well, I suppose I still have American blood running through my veins, but man do I feel like I understand this city in a deeper level. Man do I feel like I am at home, and man do I feel like I have made an impact, at least on myself.****
