Soweto Inside Out


Book Description

This is a title about Soweto from inside and out. It is an effort to mark a century since the first forced removals of black Africans from central Johannesburg to the banks of the Klipspruit River. It is also in recognition of the limited books available on a world-famous city. Soweto's huge growth came in the post-war decades. One famous resident Walter Sisulu believed that the country's modern history is impossible to separate from that of its most famous township. 'The history of South Africa cannot be understood outside the history of Soweto the development of the township, and the trials and tribulations of its people are a microcosm of the history of this country.' The township became a focus of world attention in 1976 during bloody repression of student protests, and again during the violence of the Eighties.




Inside Soweto


Book Description

A memoir of a white official in South Africa’s largest black ‘city’ in the aftermath of the 1976 uprising, Grinker’s Inside Soweto is a revelation. A view from within the ‘system’, too radical for the conservatives and too conservative for the radicals, Inside Soweto came out in 1986, only to be rapidly sold out – and conveniently forgotten. This new, revised edition features an epilogue written by Grinker in 2014. It also contains rare photos from the author’s collection. ‘A very interesting commentary on the situation’ Bowen Northrup, editor, The Wall Street Journal




Soweto Blues


Book Description

Tells the remarkable story of how jazz became a key part of South Africa's struggle in the 20th century, and provides a fascinating overview of the ongoing links between African and American styles of music. Ansell illustrates how jazz occupies a unique place in South African music.Through interviews with hundreds of musicians, she pieces together a vibrant narrative history, bringing to life the early politics of resistance, the atmosphere of illegal performance spaces, the global anti-apartheid influence of Hugh Masakela and Miriam Makeba, as well as the post-apartheid upheavals in the national broadcasting and recording industries.




Class in Soweto


Book Description

Soweto, South Africa's most populous and politically important township, is in many ways the microcosm of the country's stratification of extremes. This study offers an in-depth look at the phenomenon of class and its ramifications from the point of view of urban South Africa, using an analysis of more than 2000 questionnaires and offering insights gleaned over a six-year period.




Born in Soweto


Book Description

Soweto, a sprawling urban city, home to four million people, became an icon of the apartheid era, infamous around the world for its violence, filthy streets and rickety shacks. This is a description of life in Soweto, told from the resident's point of view.




AF Press Clips


Book Description




Inside South Africa


Book Description




Inverting the Norm: Racially-Mixed Congregations in a Segregationist State


Book Description

Inverting the Norm describes how a few Christian congregations in apartheid South Africa achieved racial integration despite the state's legal enforcement of segregation. The book analyzes how this paradoxical racial integration, alongside state segregation, relates to historical shifts in global and national norms.




Witchcraft, Violence, and Democracy in South Africa


Book Description

Large numbers of people in Soweto & other parts of South Africa live in fear of witchcraft, presenting complex & unique problems for the government. Adam Ashforth explores the challenge of occult violence & the spiritual insecurity that it engenders to democratic rule in South Africa.




Parish Transformation in Urban Slums


Book Description

"The poverty of people living in urban slums in Kenya and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa is one of the greatest scandals of our time. Much has been written about the causes of poverty, yet there seems to be little improvement. One reason for this failure is that many programmes are focused on "doing something for the poor but not with the poor." Through a two-year process of social analysis and theological reflection, the parishioners of Christ the King Catholic Church in Kibera slum examined the many injustices facing them in their daily lives. The aim of the parish was to better understand the reality of life in Kibera so that it could people improve their lives in a more responsive and holistic way. This book is a summary of the parish's findings. In their own words, parishioners describe their history, living conditions, socio-economic problems, parish life and African culture that are particular to Kibera. It is a unique perspective because parishioners evaluated these problems in the light of their faith. As a Christian community, parishioners made a plan and have begun their own initiatives to resolve the most serious injustices facing them. This is an important resource for people working in slums."--p. 4 of cover.




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