An epic struggle, a recent coup for freedom and a continuing effort to reunite a country fractured by the racial rule of apartheid - all within my lifetime. I couldn’t be more privileged to study in such a place.
I leave Thursday evening for the bustle of Johannesburg, South Africa, and will later arrive on the shores of Durban. My semester abroad, through the School for International Training, will focus on the politics of reconciliation and development. The experience will culminate with a month-long independent study project, and I’ve chosen to focus on the media’s role in reconciliation and issues of representation.
Studying aside, the lure of South Africa’s summer sun is almost enough to win over the heart of a native New Englander. Scraping ice off my car and practically skating to the mailbox hardly compares to the open expanses, beautiful coastline and 80-degree weather of the Rainbow Nation.
But I didn’t base my decision on positive differences of degrees. (Ask my friends - I almost went to Russia.) Rather, I was attracted to South Africa by the infancy of its democracy, a system built on reunification, reconciliation and the promotion of respect. Rather than turn the tables on the white minority Nationalist Party, former president Nelson Mandela, current President Thabo Mbeki, the African National Congress and the people of South Africa chose inclusion over exclusion, peace over violence and forgiveness over revenge.
I cannot think of many countries with so much to offer a student of journalism and politics such as myself. Millions of Africans, Indians and Coloreds sacrificed their lives and energy to reclaim their homeland, only to turn around and welcome the world with open arms. To visit and study is a true privilege.
