I am a Survivor not a victim

I never thought I would be a price tag, walking around like a super model showing casing the latest tends but only focus is my sexual abilities with men I could easy mistaken to be my father without any biological and emotional connection. 

My feet and eyes along with my ever changing passport can bring out jealously towards any travel agent as I have been everywhere you can think of without even writing a cheque for it.  First Class? Please I give a whole new meaning to that. Like Jay Z, I was one to the next one before I could say I got a million ways to get it. My name is Zodwa for now and this is my story.

I remember this day as if it was yesterday. My friends and I went to town to window shop and pretend we had money to afford anything what we desired. A man who was dressed well in brands names I couldn’t even pronounce approached us and with a simple “Hello” we were all his attention. He told us stories about the big city life but I was only interested about Jozi the Gold City of South Africa. I wanted to know about it all, does it really have gold and are the houses and building made out of gold.  He told me that I can make my dreams come true only if I get myself there and I will make my parents proud of me.  The man told us that he is willing to help us in anyway free of charge and if we didn’t have family in the city, he will provide us with the accommodation expenses.  With the political state of Zimbabwe, alongside my family income nothing was holding me back from embarking a journey that will lead me to riches, so I thought but to my surprise!

 I packed my things and quietly got out of my house. I turned my back to take the last look at my house than continued to begin my journey. I met up with my friends at a nearby bus stop. He arrived and we got it but one of my friends Thandeka decided in the last minute to turn down the offer to go as she couldn’t picture leaving home without her parents’ blessings. I hugged and kissed her, “I promise I will come back, tell my parents that I had to do this for me and them.”

We arrived in Jozi and damn it  was big, I mean everything was huge and I now knew why they called it the “Big City” filled with life.  Suddenly the tone of the man changed as well his eys. He took us to this house crammed with other girls but they were in pretty bad shaped that made boxers themselves look sexy after a boxing match. They all had fear in their eyes, some even ashamed to even look as us.  One girl came close to me and said” so what did the white man tell you?”

I told her the story with excitement next thing I know he whole room packed with girls laughed at me as if I was a standup comedian.  ‘”You silly stupid girl, soon you will regret this but in a couple of months you will get used to it but at least he was creative with you, us on the other hand he was straight forward” the all said.  My skin began to crumble and my hair stood up and I silently asked her to tell her story but she replied by saying “there is no point to tell you my revision because at the end our conclusions are the same, with the same characters”

After those words I couldn’t sleep one wink and started to question why I am here.  Why these girls in these conditions and what did Pinky mean when she said I will regret but get over this experience. Morning came with the answers I was looking for that later was regretted for even been thought for. We were told to take off our clothes and I mean all off and walk up and down.those whom were still virgins were separated from those who have already been sexually active. Next we got new names, mine was Sara and told to get ready as I was leaving tomorrow, but where am I going because I am where I want to be, Johannesburg.

I and a couple of girls were taken to O.R Tambo International airport and were consciously remembered not to relieve our real names as trouble will occur if we did not obey the rules. We boarded the plane accompained of course by three men. The plane flew to Durban and that’s how I entered in to the world of human trafficking, the beginning of my nightmare. We were at work the minute we landed, got taken to dinner by high profile men some maybe you know but will not mention them as that will cause a battle I am not ready to fight.  The man I was assigned to seem nice, he took me back to his place and we had dinner. For the first few months I thought I was in heaven but suddenly the dinner stopped and the shopping. One night he came into my room and demanded sex. I said no, that answer was responded by a slap right across the face. He asked again but I still maintained my answer next thing I know he was on top of me and began what he wanted to do all along with me. There, my first was my first rape and there was more to come of course with other men. I hate myself everyday not because the men that I was sold to every now and then raped and treated me like a dg but I hated myself because I was so stubborn. Why did I believe the man that promised me a better life? Why didn’t I get off the car like Thandeka? I should have not agreed to this at all but I could have been or should have been were not going to help me or every night I started to dream on how I will escape.

It was Friday and that was the day where we made most money and it was going to be my lucky day. My customer of course came to pick up his product, if only he knew that it would be his last.  After dinner we went home to have sex, so he thought. While he was getting in the mood, I turned around and stabbed him in the chest over and over again. I kept on thinking about my first night, how I was raped and where men treated me even less of a human being. I am not sorry for what I did in fact I would do it again in a heartbeat. My name is Zodwa used to known as Sara, and I am a human trafficking and rape survivor. 

Whatever

I recently saw a tweet on twitter said some of the greater things in life are unseen that’s why you close your eyes when you kiss. Whatever dude! I mean like get real that is not true…well for me its not. Kissing the first time was great but as time went on it seemed as if I was counting the days until this activity would end. Yes of course I get the feeling of excitement and thinking that this is the night where I break my virginity but than reality spoils and rescues me. Well, we all have them (even us guys too). The problem here is when certain women allow their emotions to guideall of their actions and when things go south, they have to work harder to undo the damage. When emotions guide ALL your actions, there’s mostly always more to everything as far as you’re concerned. If he calls more often than he does on one particular day, it maybe means he’s done something wrong. If he asks too many questions about one of your friends, he probably has issues with her or some hidden agenda. The date was the 10th of December year 2010 time (no you don’t have to know all the details about that). He logged on Mxit and my heart jumped because truth to be told I never got over him and funny enough and scary at the same time I never will. He told me he wants another chance to try again in our relationship and suddenly instead of being happy I felt fear.

Fear of disappointment and love not from him though, from me. In the past I got so hurt and messed up in past relationship that by my own I developed an emotion of “I don’t care anymore”. To elaborate for

you this means that I dated guys but will end things within two months because I didn’t want things to go

any further. Secondly this emotion also made me feel ok and kind of great to cheat because at the end I wasn’t in this till the end in fact I wasn’t in it for the beginning. Brave I know but inside I was dying and yearning for true love. You see when you are single with no one there to comfort you romantically; you tend to see a lot of couples publicly displaying affection and love. I wanted to kill every single couple that I saw because they indirectly reminded me of what I am missing so dearly. I missed it yes but I was not even going to embark on that journey of love, not at all. I know people say true love has its ups and downs but when it hits you it’s hard to ignore it. WHATEVER!! I stopped being a fan of Cinderella stories long before I could say “wow that’s so sweet”. I am not going to wait or hope ad pray that my so called soul mate will come because love is not for everyone, least of all me.

Nothing will make you feel better and more in love than reuniting after a breakup, it really

does add spice and sparkle to a relationship so they.....

Chris Brown..F.A.M.E

No one can deny the fact Chris Brown is very talented besides his physical activities that we wont discuss about. Whether being praised for his brilliant live performances or scolded for his notorious actions, Brown has been the focus of media attention since his debut. However, the entertainer has managed to channel these pressures into a body of work that may very well be his best album to date. F.A.M.E is safely to say one of the best works in his career and puts me in a higher platform than he was.
Brown has not abandoned his Urban roots in favor of finding success on the Pop bandwagon. Instead, he provides a healthy mix of material that features several Hip-Hop and R&B tracks, most of which he co-wrote himself.
Indeed, most of the additions to this album actually weaken it instead of helping Brown’s cause, a point that also applies to his collaborators. Justin Bieber’s flat, emotionless and blatantly annoying attempts at singing almost ruin the drum-driven ‘Next To You’, which was brilliantly produced by The Messengers.
Once consumers manage to look pass the media propaganda, he could very well enjoy similar success to Usher’s Grammy Award-winning ‘Raymond vs Raymond’ LP. Fans may be his everything as the ‘F.A.M.E’ acronym suggests but a platinum plaque and Grammy gold would certainly be an enjoyable bonus.

Nigga vs Kaffir

America has really started a trend that everyone especially in South Africa love saying, and I mean it. Nigga, nigga and nigga is one of the most favorite lingo word among young South Africans and some will refer them to be coconuts but that's another topic for another day.
Anyway for years I have been hearing this word in rap music and American movies and they way they said it was I must admit was very cool and entertaining to say the most and of course it would make anyone want to act like that in public.  In high school was when it become “the word” to say to your friends and when South Africa hip-hop was on a rise the word was said left right and center.
I am now older and no I am not wiser but ke the interactive  of the word is becoming stronger and stronger especially in universities nigga.
The thing I do not understand is when black South Africans get offensive when they are called kaffir but they walk around proud with the heads held up high when they are called nigga. Eish! as Kurt William would say remixed my Sindiswa Nene, there  is nothing worse than a smart dump nigga.....ha.a ke do not  get me started  with a dump kaffir

nigga and kaffir is the  same thing do not get offended when I call you  kaffir instead of nigga
"nigga wats up"..."kaffir unjani wena " see yafana man thi

I want to be white sana......

Sometime me does wish i was white. Yes i said it i wish i was white but not skin colour but hey i wouldn’t mind the hair. Before you judge listen why i say i wish i was white. You see white people have what we call black people Ubuntu. They know how to take care of each other without wanting anything in return. Like Chris Rock says a white man gets wealthy, he builds Wal-Marts and makes other white people have some motherfucking money. A brother gets rich, he buys some motherfucking jewelry. They have this ability to support each other without getting jealous or better yet killing each other. We on the other, we rather die than see another black person succeed in life. Gossiping ke is one of our best departments, we love gossiping about other people to make us feel better, and serious we do.
You would think after all we went through as black people, we would have each other’s back kodwa no that’s not the case.  Let me make another example that is relevant and might piss some if not all of you. Cricket South Africa (eish!) the CEO is black right and his late brother Khaya Majola was known for fighting on behalf talented black players to be considered to play for the national side.  Now as years went by we have only seen one and I mean one talented good black cricket player Makhaya Ntini yet we always see new white players and now I cannot even keep up.  See typical of a black man rather see a number of a new white player than a large number of black new players, and no I am not being racist. Don’t believe me? Ok let me give you another example. Rugby South Africa has a white CEO and majority of the players in the national side are….Come on take a guess…they are white. Now what do you call that, kanti how does this affirmative action work? See white people empower each other, get with the programme black people Julius Malema cannot even save on this one and don’t even try to sing freedom songs to get your way out of it.
 Viva la white people viva and no I won’t shot you so chill
Now tell me wouldn’t you also want to be white.

RIGHT OF THE MEDIA?

The question of wheatear the ability of media and the responsibility they have to society and especially being the watch dog for government has been in the limelight.   The question of the leadership of Jacob Zuma has been in discussed from 2006 right through 2010, from his sexual relationship and the problem of him having more one wife but in the real essences we are not focusing on the president but on how to hand the situation of the media.

Just last year the government offered the proposal to regulaurite media in the country. If this is successful it would mean that the media will have to check with the state before publishing any publication material wheatear in newspaper, radio and television.  Of course this will reduce the full ability to be a journalist in this country.

Now some people would not understand the role of the media in our country. The media is there to act as a watchdog and also be a voice to those whom cannot be heard.  They keep people of government in check and bring forward issues that would not usually be brought in front for attention. Think about if it was not for the media, this country will still be living in apartheid environment and the fruits of our democracy would not have been and still be enjoying. Nelson Mandela would have not gain for much international support if we did not have the media reporting and telling the world about his political   ideologies.

South Africa is a democratic country with a constitution which has a bill of rights that makes provisions for the rights of citizens as well as institutions. These are the same rights that protect and guarantee the media from censorship. Freedom of the press and other media is protected by Section 16(1) of the constitution and grants everyone the right to freedom of expression, including the freedom to receive or impart information or ideas. These are fundamental rights to democracy and they are the basis of a democratic nation.

The right to freedom of the media has also been interpreted as protecting the ‘tools of the trade’ that are integral to various forms of media. Our courts have also recognized the special role that the media play as agents of expression and protectors of democracy: ‘In a system of democracy dedicated to openness and accountability, as ours is, the especially important role of the media, both publicly and privately owned, must in  view be recognized. The success of our constitutional venture depends upon full-bodied criticism of the exercise of power. This requires alert and critical citizens. But strong and independent newspapers, journals and broadcast media are needed also, if those criticisms are to be effectively voiced, and if they are to be informed with the factual content and critical perspectives that investigative journalism may provide.

South African media is not as hush as the international media but in the past years it has been tough on certain individuals for example when President Jacob Zuma was in trail for rape, the media had already gave him a verdicted which was guilty, even after he was found innocent the media still printed me as a rapist and highlighted the fact that South Africa might have a rapist as a president.

If you can remember the late Manto Tshabalala who was the Minister of Health. The media reported a story about her in the Sunday Times about the fact she drinks and smokes and jumped the line of people wanting donors because she is in a higher position. A journalist broke in the hospital where she was and stole her medical documents to verify the story and exposed her to the public nationally. Now this is very good journalism but one cannot agree that it was and still is unethical because if a journalist can break and go through your medical documents and expose you for whatever reason, could our national security be in danger? I mean in my opinion there should be things that they government does not share to the media because powerful information in words can be more dangerous than a gun or a bomb. On the other side the public had the right to know about Manto Tshabalala because she is a public figure whom is in government therefore all she does is taken seriously like if she says as a minister of health tells you to stop drinking because it does not do you any good, people will take that seriously because she is a personal in the health sector therefore whatever information she brings forward must be true.

Question of why the government would want to regulate the media is very important because we need to question of this intention. Is the government hiding something that they do not want the public to know and if so what is it? Does it have the potential to destroy or endanger the people of our country? 

At the same time the media do report on things that put people in danger and even destroy the reputation in society, so if the government is taken in to question by the media for its dealings, who will put and check the media do they job correct and if no who will they have to answer to? In an article done by the Mail and Guardian reporting on what the ANCYL President Julius Malema called,” Malema: 'The media think they are untouchable”. There Malema makes comments about the media not having their facts straight when reporting a story and putting inncent people in danger referring to his situation and he said  the media had put him and his family's lives in danger after the death of AWB leader Eugene Terre'blanche by suggesting that "Malema's songs had contributed" to the murder incident.

In some way it is understandable why he would say because blaming someone for such an act and saying he is responsible for the death of Eugene Terrblance is not right in some way but he is the person that spiked the incident. 

The needs to be an understanding between the government and the media if we want this situation between them to be solved. The media should not be regulated because that will decrease the full ability of the media and the right of freedom and expression will be just a fairytale we tell our children.

Dont Hate,Appreciate ......

As across most of Africa, when hip hop first came to South Africa many youths simply imitated what they saw and heard from American hip hop artists. But South Africa, unlike the rest of the continent, was in the throes of apartheid, and the hip hop revolution that gripped the United States inspired thousands of South African youth fighting their own revolution. The lyrics of American groups like Public Enemy and their song "Fight the Power" had a special resilience among South African youth.

Now according to me South African hip hop is on high thanks to two artists in my opinion, Khuli Chana and AKA and of course with the help of one of the country’s hottest producers IV League. These people have done all what needs to be done to save the hip hop industry from hell (pun intended)  not only do they realize the genre is a money making business but also have mastered the art of swagg( hip hop lingo for fashionable or stylish).

These boys have not only gave me another reason to buy cd’s again but have also erased the stigma that South African Rappers are the sidekicks of the likes of Jay Z and Tupac to name a few.

Khuli Chana also better known as The Motswak originator is the album title of Khuli Chana’s first offering and was released in 2009. On this album, he brings through a distinctive sound and formula. The concept is about bringing back the show; the energy; creativity; stage; lights; and quality performance that are out of the ordinary. This project is already receiving a very positive and overwhelming response and is already a success with Khuli Chana working with some of the hottest producers in the game. He worked with the likes of: TowdeeMac and Kay-G of Morafe fame; IV League; Octave Couplet and Jazz Worx. The lyicals are on point and he runs away from the usual concept of rapping about girls, drugs and sex on better how good you are in the bedroom. (Nam I don’t know why but ke it’s that).

Moving on to AKA, now this boy ain’t a stranger to the hip hop scene, he boast into the scene while in high school with a group called Entity although the boys never received much hype but you could sense they are going on the right direction.

His album is out of this world and his flows have a certain hard-headed attitude that suit his image and target market, perfect for a club scene and that slow Sunday groove. Ewe AKA is going place and I put my trust in him and Khuli to fly high and create a platform bigger than they imagined.

MISUNDERSTOOD

Media coverage on public health hospitals in the Nelson Mandela Bay have left majority of professional nurses in the region outraged. Nurses at the Provincial Hospital in P.E state the media has always reported one side, leaving no consideration of getting their side of the matter. Quality care and service is always a serious concern of medical and nursing professional.

Although the state contributes about 40% of all expenditure on health, the public health sector is under pressure to deliver services to about 80% of the population. Despite this, most resources are concentrated in the private health sector, which sees to the health needs of the remaining 20% of the population. Public health consumes around 11% of the government's total budget, which is allocated and spent by the nine provinces. How these resources are allocated, and the standard of health care delivered, varies from province to province.

Nurses in the public sector experiencing matter that are beyond their line of duty for example Nurses are expected to train student nurses and asset them with practical’s as well as serving patients who are in need of health services.  Dr. W Maqqgi who is the Senior Medical Superintendent says the biggest problem by far is funding and short stuff. “People expect us to deliver and with the human right that is true but we as professionals expect the government to fund us with every equipment possible but sadly that is not true.”

South Africa is very popular in the international community for doctors and nurses which puts a great disadvantage not only to the hospitals but also the patients. Many nurses including doctors leave the country not because the want to but because of the better working conditions other countries provide like reasonable salaries and great communication with the management and government.  Mrs. Moss who is the Head of Department in the Nurses division says the shortage of staff with a subsequent increase in workload for the remaining nursing staff, negatively impacts on the delivery of patient care and increase the level of job dissatisfaction.

It is time to put a stop on blaming who did this and who did not do that, the less we complain and start working together the better our health services will be in future.

TAKES TWO TO TANGO

With no doubt South Africa is entering an arena where the issue of governance is very questionable among South Africans. Politics is and will always be an issue where personal differences will clash. People say that if you are a political leader you need to behave in a certain manner in society. Since human beings are naturally competitive, how does one set up rules on how politicians need to act? If men in the state of nature cannot trust one another then how can they trust one another when they promise to obey the government they have established?  Men keep their promises only when there is a government to enforce them. Obviously politicians need to be unselfish when it comes to political issues and the people which they are serving.  They need to be in a positions where they have to give up their needs and wants for the people. Politicians need to behave in a manner where young people can identify them as leaders and role models, and they have to be respectful and carrying themselves with dignity. With all that being said, how do we make sure that they actually do act and behave in this certain way?  The answer is it starts with us, the people of this country. It was once said by Mahatma Gandhi “be the change you want to see in the world”.  Why should our political leaders take us seriously if we expect them to be in a certain way but we, ourselves can’t be what we want them to be? If we want our political leaders to respect and care for us, we must, the people be able to first respect and care for ourselves and others whom are around us.  Once we as the people of the Republic of South Africa achieve that, we will be able to challenge politicians on their behaviour because it will be something that we live by in our everyday lives.  The South Africa constitutions states, “legislators and political leaders and all levels of government are held continually accountable to the people in respect of wisdom and consistency of their policy and integrity, diligence and with skill which they execute their public responsibilities”.

Ok I know is sounds like a fairy-tale for some of you and understandable so.  In today’s government, people in government think somehow that they are in those positions because they put themselves there.  They do not understand that they are in those positions because people whom vote placed them there not themselves.  South Africa has a problem where too many politicians have the idea that they cannot be removed in their positions because they are the “government”.  James Madism said” knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and people who mean to be their won Governors, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but Prologue to a force or tragedy or perhaps both” our politicians have not understood the word GOVERNMENT yet. The government is and will always be the people. They need to listen to us because we have put our faith and trust that they will represent and serve us up to their best ability. In our constitution it clearly states” all power shall vest in the people of the Republic, who shall exercise their sovereignty through the democratic instruments of State, created and identified in this Constitution.

If our constitution says that, why isn’t right to challenge the State when it comes to issues of power, social and serves delivery?  History may be old but can be and always be relevant in the present and future. Our problems in the past are not the same but maybe the solutions of the past may still be a solution for the present and future. We have a harsh history that no one wishes to go back to (I hope).

 

EXPRESSION

We smile, we love, we cry. We, the human beings experience a wide spectrum of emotions in our life. Some of them are expressed while others die in our own mind, but from time immemorial, our emotions have been voiced through music. Music, which is composed of seven distinct tunes, is actually an expression of human emotions. Expressing is one element no man or woman to live without. As time went by, more and more forms of expression came to a raise. Since the beginning of time, music has been used as an expression of cultural identity. Ancient tribal societies used music as a foundation for gatherings and to express their history, ethnicity, and cultural beliefs. Music has changed throughout the ages, but the use of music as an essential part of cultural and individual expression has changed very little. Over the years music has not only been used to express feelings or the state of the world in which are living in, but is now also used to advertise for popular brands like Nokia and Nike to name a few. Young people of today often identify themselves with certain things in life by the help of music. Music can put more meaning to something that is just expressed with maybe words or images. For example the FIFA World Cup 2010 Song “wave your flag” by Keaan was more of a meanigful to people than the slogan for the event which was FEEL IT, IT IS HERE!.


Since music has a large range of geners i wanted to talk about Rap music. A style of music that first appeared in the mid-1970s as an outgrowth of popular dance music. Developed, as was break dancing, by urban American blacks, its format originally consisted of a disc jockey (D.J.) playing snatches of a record in short bursts, punctuated by rhythmical scratching of the needle on the record, while a “rapper” sang or recited in fast, slangy, rhymed lyrics. Rap lyrics often dealt with harsh subjects such as gangs, drugs, and crime, rap's mainstream popularity was typified but at the end of the day it is expression. Rap music has brought more issues that are faced in society on a daily bases to the forefront, weather it may be how the government runs the country or how people can be the change they want to see in life. The intersting about rap music is that although people say that it is rude and uses very harsh words, it also makes alot of money for those who sing it and those who say its wrong and sends out the wrong information to the public. Some government messages that can be health or education sector use rap music to draw audience so that their message can reach larger masses than the masses that could have be drawn if they did not use rap music.


The rap music also developed a sense of style in dressing or fashion. The bagginbg jeans, large size t-shirts and all. It is a way to be idenrified and a way to be accepted in the rap and hip hop world. Alot of people like Russle Simmons who is the CEO nad co founder of DEF JAMS has made a success in this, having a clothing label that represents the rap and hip hop music world and a company that producese the music too. Dance is also very expressive with emotion and the movement that it has. In terms of the hip hop dance. The first mention of hip hop dance dates back to the 70’s when some new moves were introduced to the dance world to accompany the funky sounds of hip hop music that was also being discovered. Most popular among African Americans and Latin Americans at first, there are many races who now lay claim to defining this diverse dance phenomenon. The first mention of hip hop dance dates back to the 70’s when some new moves were introduced to the dance world to accompany the funky sounds of hip hop music that was also being discovered. Most popular among African Americans and Latin Americans at first, there are many races who now lay claim to defining this diverse dance phenomenon.


Across the United States from the ‘Boogie Down’ Bronx, New York to the ‘Beat Street’ corners of Compton, California, young people everywhere took to this new style of dancing that included such feats as breaking, popping, locking, gliding, ticking, vibrating and krumping. In the earlier days, some hip hop dance moves such as the Humpty Dance were made popular by hip hop artists who had created the songs from which these dances were derived. Early on, dance competitions on sidewalks included beat boxing, a form of music-making that included raps and special sound effects made with the hands and mouth. Artists like The Fat Boys rose to fame and fortune with Buffy’s beat boxing talents. After the outbreak of interest in hip hop dance, there were even several movies highlighting this new form of dancing that combined beats, sounds, and gravity-defying moves. Crush Groove and other movies saw their day in the spotlight as hip hop dance continued to expand to different cultures and races and locations around the globe. From freestyle forms that were often the spotlight of informal battles both indoors and outdoors to formally trained dancers who began to incorporate hip hop dance as a means of dance and


physical exercise, hip hop dance has continued to evolve. Today, hip hop dance has earned a recognized place in dance studios and is practiced as regularly as other styles.


So it is clear that music and dance are expressive but it is the individual who decides themselves how to use that expressive form up to their best ability in life, but one must admit that some issues that we face on a daily bases have been dealt with on a sense able way than other ways like wars. In the old days instead of killing someone for what they say, you can just express yourself in a song or battle them in a dance off at a club or street. One must think if these elements did not exist what or how would have we dealt with the worlds problems and making our point and opinions be heard and listened to.

The Hypocritical society

“What the hell are these people doing? Have they no shame or respect towards other people whom are around them? Shame man they have a disorder that has to be cured fast.”

 For years gays and lesbians have been in the lime light of discriminations in society, from community leaders, to priests, media, their own family members and I. When we debate about them and judge them we are all quick to quote the bible and preach to them and everyone else that God created Adam and Eve for a reason, not Adam and Paul or Eve and Sara therefore it is a sin and that this should not be tolerated by anyone on this earth.  Wow!

That’s quite a mouthful right?

Religious groups have come and  creating blog and websites where they condemn gays and lesbians even quoting bible passages, for instance Pastor Peter J Peters posted on his blog http://www.identity.org/files/homo.html  “He says that homosexuals "are willing to prescribe the death penalty to those who oppose them." He writes that the Bible does not allow homosexuals basic freedoms, like free speech, free assembly, right to do business, right to act politically, to live with anyone they wish, the right to live safely without being victimized by violence. He also goes in detail why the youth should not choose their sexual orientations because God has already chose for them.

Pope Benedict XVI also had a couple of  opinions regarding homosexuals  in 2010  he said  same-sex marriage are some of the most "insidious and dangerous" threats facing the world today.

So if we connect what the Pope and those religious groups and websites say, with what the bible tells us, we assume the case is closed right!?

Well let’s sit back for a minute, so homosexuals are being judged by people whom society considers “straight” and quote their arguments in the bible.  We seem to have a lot to say about them but we do not have a lot to say about the various action “straight “ people do that are not allowed according to the bible.   For instance the bible did say we should not engage in sex before marriage but guess what!? We do find a lot of straight people who have sex before marriage.  Society is filled with teenage pregnancy and single mothers but we never bring out the bible for them so even worse tell they suffer from a disorder. Churches are filled with priest whom have been married more than twice but wait a minute doesn’t the bible say through sickness and in health, TIL DEATH DO US APART!?  They still get divorce but their Word of God says the opposite of what they are practicing.

“So I lost my virginity when I was 16 and the guy was 20 it felt great” “people should not stay virgins forever or wait until marriage to lose because you don’t know what you’re missing”

As years went by people have become custom to the fact that people are having sex before marriage, and even have now develop a mindset that says its ok to have sex before marriage but one must be older and of course use a condom.  How could that be?  Why has society become custom to what the bible and God said clearly that is wrong?  according people the Word of God says homosexuality   is a sin and they also say having sex before marriage is a sin but they turn around and judge others forgetting to judge themselves, put greater guilt upon those whom are gay than those whom engage in sexual activities before marriage, so whose word is true and more spoken and whose bible is it?

We see churches today that are filled with presets who say sex before marriage is a sin yet they are not married but have children. We also find church leaders whom rape young boys to satisfy their sexual desires. No one seems to say that they suffer from a disorder or rather no one seem to punish them by sitting rules where they are sent to jail because they are engaging in sexual activities before marriage. There are countless countries where homosexuals are being killed not jailed killed for what they choose to be and freely expressing that.

If being gay and being a non-virgin is a sin and wrong than why doesn’t society create laws like where people are sent to jail for not being a virgin like other countries do for those whom are homosexuals?  Can we comfortably call ourselves hypocritical for judging and saying that gays are sinners but later turn around and have sex before marriage and say its normal and times have changed?  If that is so than its time for us to become respect and accept homosexuals just like we have respected and accepted that other people choose not wait until marriage for sex.

The Clock is Ticking _ s1m2n1

UNGRATEFUL GENERATION

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No one should ever forget the events of the past that made history, like the day when South African youth of 1976 became heroes and role models. Vision yourself having to take a decision that is way ahead of your time and age but believing the action you are taking will have a reaction that will make the future brighter not only for you, also those whom are after you. Picture yourself walking down the road with policemen in front of you singing freedom songs for a better life and education for all and later having them shoot you for your human right. Like dogs you go down and later treated like a worthless item of clothing that had no purpose in life.

In 1975 protests started in African schools after a directive from the then Bantu Education Department that Afrikaans had to be used on an equal basis with English as a language of instruction in secondary schools. The issue, however, was not so much the Afrikaans as the whole system of Bantu education which was characterized by separate schools and universities, poor facilities, overcrowded classrooms and inadequately trained teachers. On 16 June 1976 more than 20 000 pupils from Soweto began a protest march. In the wake of clashes with the police, and the violence that ensued during the next few weeks, approximately 700 hundred people, many of them youths, were killed and property destroyed.

It’s been more than thirty years since that event but it seems as if we are carrying on as if it had no significance what so ever. I remember every year when 16 of June comes by, for my parents it’s a day where they remember their friends who died and those whom were taken by the police and disappeared from the face of the earth as if they never existed.  For me and other people my age, it was just another day and a public holiday which meant no school. EXCITEMENT RIGHT? Sure but now as I grow up and learn more and more about this day, I am now ashamed of myself and I can comfortably call myself ungrateful because I now am able to enjoy what my parents and grandparents never got to do. I can walk around this country and not be afraid of being killed by the police just because I am black. I can now learn in my mother tongue or even in English and I have the opportunity to become anything in life as long as I am prepared to work for it.  It is because of them that I now have the right to vote and take part in politics without being killed.

How we celebrate this day is going out clubbing and drinking our minds out and not remembering what we did the previous night and still we have the nerve to say we are celebrating the youth of June 16. Did you know that those students were burning down sheebins and clubs because they knew how much of an effect alcohol has on the black community? They knew it was alcohol that played a part in breaking some black families during those days. Parents would drink the whole day to forget the amount of damage the system had on them.  Young children would drink because they never had resources like community centers where youngsters can get empowered and take part in extra mural activities.

We complain about the political situation of our country and how the ANC or the DA are not doing their job but funny enough we never participate in politics. We are the generation where if something doesn’t affect me than it’s not my business. We are quick to preach what the youth of 1976 went through but we are last to continue the fight of equity, freedom and right of life.

I must admit the problems and the struggles of the past are not the same as the ones we have today. We face HIV/AIDS, unemployment and crime to name a few.  Think to yourself for a minute, have you tested for HIV/AIDS? Have you visited your nearest AIDS orphanages and see how you can help? Have you registered to vote lately so what you need and want are meant by the government? If you have answered no to any of these questions it’s time for you to change your attitude.

So next time you celebrate June 16, reflect on the past, look at your present, look at your community and see if the challenges you  have together with your community.  Can they be solved or not? If one individual can die for your freedom, the least you can do to repay them is to keep the fight alive not only for your own being but also for the generation that will follow after you.

GETTING DISAPPOINTED

Love is like falling down... in the end you're left hurt, scarred, and with a memory of it forever.They say the best way to get over a man is to be with another one. I strongly doubt that things can be that simple. Having spent two years of my life investing into a relationship I thought would last until kingdom come. And to my surprise….


All romantic songs, movies and books seem to follow the same storyline. Girl meets boy, they are faced with different challenges that will determine the amount of love respect and care they have for each other.  The ending is far the most entertaining by far, the girl falls for the bad boy and as she is about to make the biggest mistake of her life, the boy appears again and tells her that his heart belongs to her only and the love they have only comes once in a lifetime, blah blah blah blah. 


Cliché it might be but honestly that storyline is so very familiar in reality but the only thing that these books, movies and songs never seem to master is the heartbreaking and the feelings that carry one onto two roads. PAIN OR HAPPINESS!


So we watch and listen to other people’s interpretation of love and we try to incorporate that to our experiences to that. We listen and judge but funny enough we find ourselves falling for the same storyline and walk away with a broken heart or if you are lucky a happy heart but prior to that still have doubts and questions on how and why this is happening to us.  We search for answers that we know will hurt us at the end. We fall in love with the illusion of love to be in the “in crowd” in society.  If he is bad for me, I make him a good guy to my peers so I don’t get to face the fact that I am stupid


My best friend and his room  was the platform that brought me to discover the disturbing news: ”i  am  pregnant and your boyfriend is the father of the child ” Silence……My heart beat was all I could feel and hear. Doom, doom, doom, doom, oblivious to the pots I was burning in the kitchen. The walls caved in, my mouth dried like a dessert in summer’s heat.


Just like that, what could have been is to be more. The time, memories, hopes, future plans of building an “ever-after” dismantled like a jigsaw puzzle knocked over in a drunken blankness. What’s next? What did I do wrong? What does she have that I don’t have


WOW! All I could see was his smile and how they always made me crave the taste of his lips. Kissing in public never seem to bother me because it felt so right although in the black community it was so wrong but hey at the end we were just two teenagers who shared a teenage love affair.  Is this a dream? Is this April fool’s day?


It’s like yesterday when I first laid eyes on him, coming back from school and him from varsity. Yes I was younger but as the late Aaliyah would say” Age is nothing but a number and without it, it aint nothing but a thing” Tall, dark with the body that would make guy jealous and any girl weak in the knees (looks are everything dear) Bright white eyes centered with an Oreo.  A shy “hey” is all that seeped through those cuddly caves that hid the whitest, symmetrical teeth. Wow, felt a high synonymous to narcotics in an addict’s body. I was the prey that already had spotted her tiger and was in no rush to run away from crash.


 For months I stalked him until he finally did what I waited for him to do, he said” Hey, how are you”? I never answered with words but with a smile and he then knew what I meant to say. He walked me home and what seemed to be a very joyful journey home to me at the back of my mind, I prayed that my parents would not spoil this for me and appear from nowhere and finding myself answering questions that I didn’t have the answers yet to my father. We exchanged names, numbers and a hug for now that was.  From that day I remember thinking every call and sms would be him but to my surprise it took 2 days for him to call. I know that might be ok but waiting for a guy that you saw as your future boyfriend for 10 months to say hey and to notice you, 2 days was damn long.


I remember our first kiss. It was uncalled for, instinctive action that further widened the gap between the lover and the friend. He needed help with a computer program that enable you to edit a picture. I don’t know how changing the auto brightness changed into a collision of lips. Shyly I looked at the monitor as if it was all happening in my head.


It’s hard for me to attempt starting a new relationship because my best has been shared with someone who taught me that there is more to an attachment than romance. There are two different individuals who have to take each other into consideration when it comes to decisions and each other’s well being.


Communication is nothing more than a prerequisite for any form of amorous liaison. Without it all you have is a dream of happiness and a recipe for melancholy.

FREEDOM WRITERS

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The world we live in today is undoubtedly different from what our fore fathers and those after them lived through. Since the rising inventions of technology, to the state of which our society is living in, till this day when you are reading this article. Wheatear the events of the past that occurred were good or bad, they had two things in common. One, they left a lesson to be learnt that is more valuable than what we learn in school. You see it once said the difference between school and life? In school you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson. 

Secondly, we know about these events of the past and present because of people whom made it their business to know, educate and spread the word as far as possible. They go by the name of Journalists.  Journalists are responsible for being active in their community, learn to uncover facts and know what is relevant and useful before it is printed, or broadcasted. They through insignificant stories and reports on what the public are interested in.

Journalists are to some story tellers, others consider them freedom writers for those who do not realize how powerful the pen and paper with spoken words are.  Their responsibilities to society are to inform and educate them on the events that are occurring without them knowing so that they can make a decision for themselves how they as a society going to embark upon the issues. They should speak about issues that some people like politicians are afraid or too arrogant to discuss about. They were part of the reason why this country is free but the struggle still continues as the issues of our day age will be different from what the next generation will face but the job of a journalist will forever be to inform, educate and expose.