Week 12: South Africa Electricity

I found this link to the website for Department of Energy: Republic of South Africa. It is similar to Austin energy or any public electricity unit. I always find it interesting to see how public electricity works in another country, and I found it intriguing that it says that demand for electricity has gone up . I do not think that this is due to a population increase but most likely  due to more people in low-income communities asking for the electricity that they deserve. 

http://www.energy.gov.za/files/electricity_frame.html

Week 10: Egoli and Service Learning

                Service learning is the main component that drew me to the South Africa Maymester, so I am overjoyed to officially have my assignment of working with Egoli. Egoli addresses the lack of electricity in a township in Cape Town. I am so excited to be finding a solution for a public health issue like this. Rolling blackouts are sometimes a problem in various parts of South Africa. I grew up in a neighborhood where having electricity was never a problem. A few months ago, the electricity was temporarily out in my residence hall and my first morning class. It was an inconvenience for those few hours and I cannot imagine what it is like to live in a place where this happens daily.  I found an article published by World Bank about the problem of electricity. It addresses the problem all over the African continent and how improvements in mining can bring more electricity to more people. This would mean better quality of life and improved economies.  There are other sources such as solar energy or lights made of low-cost material that could help combat the problem, but mining could provide a long-term solution.

“Power is criticial to mining companies and by becoming anchor customers for electricity utilities, mines can save hundreds of millions of dollars in supplying their own power”

http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2015/02/09/mining-companies-can-help-turn-on-the-lights-across-sub-saharan-africa-says-world-bank

Week 9: The Top 10 from Class

After examining the overall top ten pieces from our class, I am even more excited to study in South Africa. The area that I found most enlightening was the history times. It is incredibly sad how many people have died in South Africa fighting for basic freedoms. I am looking forward to seeing how South Africa has progressed and the changes that are yet to come. I also found it enlightening to read about LGBT life in South Africa. There are few places in the world where the LGBT community is fully accepted so I was not surprised to learn to the community in South Africa faces prejudice.

            I grew up in a community that was incredibly supportive of women’s education, so it was not until I was a little older that I realized women’s rights were a problem in America and around the world. I enjoyed reading all of the pieces on this subject, just because there is a need to recognize the women who also fought in the South Africa’s civil rights movement. Finally, I really enjoyed the New York Times piece Not White Enough, Not Black Enough. No matter the context, I feel that it is critically important to recognize that each person has a unique identity. 

Week 8: The South Africa Top 10

I feel so fortunate to travel to South Africa with such an amazing group of scholars. Here is a list, in no particular order, of the top ten pieces from their independent research.

1. Josh https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqCKIUogn6E

This video provides a fascinating timeline of South Africa’s history of apartheid.

2. Elisa http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2013/09/05/winnie-mandela/2711759/

Although reviews were not all positive for the movie, I think that it is still important to show Mandela’s journey from his wife’s perspective and the role that she played as an activist.

3. Gerardo http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1136608/?ref_=tttr_tr_tt

This trailer for the District 9 movie is a different yet fascinating take on a political movement.

4. Ignacio    http://www.southafrica.info/about/quickguide.htm#.VRygIfnF-uJ

This article was extremely helpful to learn more general information about South Africa.

5. Nestor http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2013/03/south_africa_has_made_incredible_progress_since_apartheid_but_it_still_must.html

This article emphasizes exactly how I feel about progress in South Africa; much progress has been made, but more more work still needs to be done.

6. Denice http://www.fletcherforum.org/2013/06/10/tunney/

This is an article on a subject I am very passionate about; women’s rights.

7. Faith http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/apartheid/7208.shtml

8. Tiasha http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2009/06/who-are-the-cape-coloureds-of-south-africa/#.VRyii_nF-uJ   This is an interesting article about the biracial identity.

9. Connie  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elrWczhTZBk It is of crucial importance to understand the younger generation.

10. Maria http://www.pri.org/stories/2015-01-16/south-africas-tradition-domestic-work-continues-post-apartheid

Week 7: My Colleagues and South Africa

Denice Carpenter wrote a wonderful excerpt about women’s rights in South Africa. As a woman, this is an issue that I am passionate about and there is still much that needs to be done to ensure that there are equal rights between men and women around the world. I really like how she pin pointed four specific things that are hindering women’s rights in South Africa such as the “perceived incompatibility between cultural preservation and human rights.” This was something that I studied a few years ago in my global health class. Although it can be difficult, it can be done especially if world leaders are open to learning about the importance of human rights.

Gerardo Gonzalez wrote a very interesting piece about parallels between South Africa and a recent movie called District 9. Since it is a movie about extra-terrestrial  invasions, I would not have expected this comparison to made. But, I really like how the director used his past experiences to make a creative piece.

I greatly enjoyed watching the video that Connie Garza posted about the post-apartheid generation of South Africa. The young adult population is often the age group that impacts the world the most. It made me very excited to do service learning in South Africa and work with young leaders

Week 6: A Look at the Journey thus Far

After reading the two pieces by Lindsay Johns and Juan Williams, I was reminded of finding the importance balance between color-blindness and treating all races as equals. It can be harmful to be color-blind and not recognize difference races and cultures; it critically important to appreciate people’s differences and acknowledge them as global citizens. However, it is also important to ensure that all races are given equal opportunities in areas included but not limited to education, careers, housing, and courts of law.

 Lindsay Johns piece reminded me that race and ethnicity is so much more than the color of a person’s skin. In 2013, I was very fortunate to work for UT New Student Services as an orientation advisor. Social justice is a major component of the training for the position and this is something that I will always carry with me. Every year OAs put on a show with monologues about different identities on campus. Many of the monologues emphasize that identities consist of much more than appearance. For example, Hispanic/Latino(a) says “Don’t be surprised if some of us have blue eyes”.  This line always touches me and I feel like it can be applicable to a wide variety of identities because all go far beyond appearance.

One quote in particular that struck me from Williams’ piece was, “The real issue is whether America can come to terms with a reality of change.” This piece was written in 2006, but I feel that this quote is undoubtedly still relevant in the USA today. It is still relevant because, racial, gender, and religious inequalities continue to exist in the United States. Much progress has been made, but there is still much more progress that needs to occur moving forward. 

http://cf.linnbenton.edu/artcom/social_science/clarkd/upload/A%20Hispanic%20Civil%20Rights%20Movement.pdf
http://www.theroot.com/articles/world/2013/10/south_africas_coloreds_identify_most_with_blacks_in_the_us.html

Week 5:Long Walk to Freedom and Selma

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom definitely gave me good insight into South African history. I was not aware that Winnie Mandela spent time in jail as well. This gave me a new perspective on how his role as a political activist. Numerous people have jobs that affect their entire family, but his decades in prison affected dozens of members of his family. It was truly inspiring to see how his family truly cared for him as he was given more liberty in prison and eventually released. After speaking to various peers and teaching assistants who have already traveled to South Africa already, I have been told that there is a huge difference in the living conditions between white South Africans and Black South Africans. This was definitely visible in the film to see the people who lived in townships compared to the people who lived in nicer home.

            In the movie Selma, I enjoyed gaining perspective on how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had to balance being an activist, a minister, and a father. Even though he risked spending time in jail, he dedicated his life fighting for equal rights for African Americans. Just as in Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom it was enlightening to see the major differences between the living conditions of people of color and white people. In both South Africa and the United States, people of color were oppressed by white leaders. In the U.S., people from Africa were sold into slavery and brought into the United States. In South Africa, people were oppressed by the people who colonized South Africa.     

            Between the two movements, I do see some similarities. Both continue to shock me that they were not that long ago. When I think of extreme oppression, I think of something that happened centuries ago, not movements that occurred in my lifetime or my parents’ lifetime. The degrees of severity are different, but racism continues to be a problem in both South Africa and the United States and I sincerely hope that the problem can be combated in both countries.  

Week 4: Mandela and King

            Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela are two world leaders that I have always greatly admired. I see similarities in both of these men in the ways that they both believed in fighting in nonviolent ways. Although they fought with peace, both men were extraordinarily brave to fight for the rights of people of color knowing that their own lives were at risk. I think that there is something to be said that both of these men had formal educations.  King held a PhD and Mandela was the first in his family to be college education. Numerous activists have enacted change without a formal education, but like these two men I hope to use my education in a positive way to help others. I aspire to be a mental health nurse and I feel that there are major gaps in the mental health industry. I hope to use my education to do all that I can to make an impact in mental health.    

            An unfortunate difference between Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela was life span. King was assassinated in his forties and Mandela lived a long life of ninety-five years. However, twenty-seven of those years were spent in prison amongst inhumane conditions. If King had lived longer, I believe that there is a possibility he would have served in national government.  Both of these men had leadership qualities that will be remembered as some of the greatest of the twentieth century.   I have always enjoyed their wise words such as...
"It always seems impossible until it is done!" - Nelson Mandela
"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend." -MLK

Week 3:A New Look into South Africa

Since I was in elementary school, I have always wanted to visit South Africa. However, I was not aware of the vast history of the country. I see several similarities between South Africa and the United States. I was not surprised to learn that South Africa was colonized by the Dutch since most of Africa was once colonized by a European nation. I was surprised to learn the similarity between Native Americans living on reservations in the United States and Xhosa tribes living in designated areas in South Africa. Numerous reservations in the U.S. are low income and do not always have access to quality schooling, and the conditions are similar in South Africa. There is a major parallel between the civil rights movement of the 1960s and apartheid in South Africa. The United States has come a long way, but also has a long journey ahead to achieve equality for all races. After speaking to peers and UT faculty members who have traveled to South Africa before, I have been told that there continues to be a more obvious separation between black people and white people.  During my journey in South Africa, I hope to meet  leaders from diverse backgrounds so they can give me their perspective on South Africa of the past and South Africa of the present. 

I would like to ask David Gilmour, after living all over the world working for the foreign service, do you have a favorite place that you lived?

Week 2: Humanity and Privilege

When I first read McIntosh and Tatum two years ago, it gave me a completely new perspective on privilege. After reading it again, I realize how much more I think about privilege in my daily life. In some ways I benefit from privilege and in other ways I do not. As a Catholic, I know that wherever I go, I will be able to find a place of worship.  For example, there are two Catholic churches within walking distance of where I live.  I feel extremely fortunate that I am able to practice my religion in this way, but at the same time I recognize that not all religions have this privilege. As a woman, I can expect to have a lower salary than my male counterparts. I aspire to be a psychiatric nurse and even though this is a field of mostly women, wages are still lower.

            I have always approached all of my endeavors (whether it be in school, leadership positions, or traveling) with the idea that everybody has a different experience. This has helped me to remember that I should appreciate my journey as unique as opposed to expecting it to be like anyone else’s. After doing the “Is Race Real Activity”, the part that struck me the most was how human subspecies don’t exist.  Just as everyone has a different journey, each person has a certain uniqueness to them. Despite this, everyone is the part of the same human race. It is not easy, but it is extremely important to appreciate other people’s differences while at the same time understanding that we all share the principle of humanity.   

Who am I?

Hello everyone! My name is Lorena Rodriguez and I am a third year psychology major originally from San Antonio,TX. In addition to being a psychology major, I am an aspiring psychiatric nurse. I hope to be able to serve at a mental health or public health facility during my time in South Africa. I feel that it is extremely important to have a global perspective in all careers, and I am beyond excited to see what my global experience will bring!