Soweto

Soweto is a township near Johannesburg, famous for its former residents Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, and for being a hotbed of opposition to apartheid. The 1976 student uprising was centered in Soweto, and it has seen many moments of fame, shame, and sadness.

I had seen photos, newsreel, and movies set in Soweto, so I was not surprised to see the living conditions in some of the areas -- tin shacks, on tiny plots of land, no running water, electricity, or paved roads, lots of flies and garbage about. Chickens and cats walked around with no apparent restraints. Near the entrance to the neighborhood we visited (whose name I cannot begin to pronounce or reproduce) was an elementary school. We chatted with the proprietor, who told us that 30 children attend from 8am until 6:30pm every weekday. She gets donations from parents, but no real funding for the school, and we speculated that whatever money she earns comes from the group of men who were drinking inside an adjacent small building. The school itself was one room, and was about 1/2 the space of the room of Henry's classroom (which has half the kids).

There are porta-potties scattered about, as well as occasional fountains where running water can be found. As we walked around (and "we" were two black Africans and two white Americans") we were followed by kids. The kids were periodically shooed away by our guide, who knew that any coins we might give the kids might diminish what he would receive.

Soweto (which actually comes from Southwestern Township, the same way that Tribeca comes from Triangle Below Canal Street) is more diverse than I had known. Immediately adjacent to the neighborhood that we visited there is a modern paved road, with street lights, signs, and the occasional store or gas station. Moving along we saw neighborhoods with houses that are more durable -- brick, wood, or stone. These, I was told, also did not have indoor plumbing. Further on, we visited the Mandela's old house and Winnie Mandela's current house (in Orlando West, or "the Beverly Hills of Soweto"), where both electricity and running water are the norm.

In Orlando West, as with every other moderately wealthy neighborhood that I saw in Johannesburg or Cape Town, the houses were protected by fences and gates. They had driveways and garages, but these were also inside the gates.

We went also to Regina Mundi Catholic church, the scene of some of the terrible violence and most impressive resistance of the apartheid era. In those days, it was illegal for more than two people to "gather" (even to talk on a street corner), but religious gathering were excepted from this policy. So when, inevitably, the churches were used for organizing purposes, the police responded by raiding, and occasionally shooting at the people. They still have bullet holes in parts of the church.

The government is slowly building new housing to replace the shacks, but even this has opposition -- people don't want to move out of their places in order for the building to occur, so the government has to evict each person.

I've seen unemployment estimates in Soweto from 30-70%. The range doesn't surprise me, as the official population is about 1.5 million -- but residents say that 3-4 million people live there.