Race and gangs in the townships: A question of dignity?

WISER invites you to Steffen Jensen’s Book Launch and Panel Discussion on Race and gangs in the townships [...]

Race and gangs in the townships: A question of dignity?

After the fall of apartheid, the idea of a new dawn spread through South African society. But this sense of optimism was soon beset by an overarching fear of crime and criminal gangs emanating from townships. These townships may have been previously regarded as problematic, but they were also one of the loci from which it was hoped this new dawn would emerge. The African, coloured or Indian townships which had once played such a central role in the struggle against apartheid were now reduced to a new exoticized chic, or to barbaric spaces of chaos, death and destruction which threatened the infant democracy. However, none of these descriptions captures the complexities and violence of everyday township life. So how do we talk about life in the townships? How do we come to grips with the presence of gangs, or explore the rivalry between township residents? What about the fraught question of race and its relationship to gender, class and age structures? Is it possible, and could it be rewarding, to consider these questions in relation to struggles for dignity?

… and book launch …

Please join WISER to mark the launch of

Steffen Jensen’s

new book, recently published by Wits University Press _(co-published by James Currey Publishers and University of Chicago Press)

Gangs, politics and dignity in Cape Town

Speakers: Achille Mbembe, Adéle Kirsten, Thaddeus Metz, Kelly Gillespie

Tuesday, 22nd July 2008 5pm

WISER Seminar Room

6th Floor Richard Ward Building

East Campus, Wits University