A More Complex View Of Afrikaans
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly|April 16, 2018

Supporters argue the language was born of a blend of cultures

Ryan Lenora Brown
A More Complex View Of Afrikaans

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – When a wave of student protests began crashing over South Africa’s universities in mid-2015, it didn’t take long to reach the doors of Stellenbosch University. A stately campus nestled in the mountains near Cape Town, with a student body that was 60 percent white in a country where 9 in 10 people are not, “Stellies” was an obvious target for students angry with the educational status quo.

And its protesters had one grievance in particular: language.

“Being taught in Afrikaans, going to class and not understanding – these have all been part of how Stellenbosch has excluded me as a black student,” a Ph.D. student named Mwabisa Makaluza explained to a South African paper at the time, referring to the local language that was heavily used by the apartheid government.

The implication was clear: Afrikaans was for white people. But Willa Boezak didn’t see it that way. It’s crazy what apartheid did to us, Dr. Boezak, a minister and activist for South Africa’s Khoikhoi indigenous community, says he remembers thinking. It made us believe that white people invented Afrikaans and that it’s their language. The Dutch-based creole, he knew, wasn’t simply made up by white people. It emerged in the collision between Europeans, slaves, and indigenous people in Southern Africa beginning in the 17th century.

This story is from the April 16, 2018 edition of The Christian Science Monitor Weekly.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the April 16, 2018 edition of The Christian Science Monitor Weekly.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR WEEKLYView All
A League of Their Own
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

A League of Their Own

Here comes the esports revolution. Are video gamers the tom bradys of tomorrow?

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 26, 2018
In Philadelphia, home to Boathouse Row, Nicholas Pagon gives students a chance to build their own seaworthy craft.
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

In Philadelphia, home to Boathouse Row, Nicholas Pagon gives students a chance to build their own seaworthy craft.

In Philadelphia, home to Boathouse Row, Nicholas Pagon gives students a chance to build their own seaworthy craft.

time-read
3 mins  |
March 26, 2018
Why won't my animals listen to me?
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

Why won't my animals listen to me?

A horse, a cow, and a steer all share the same attitude toward shelter and warmth.

time-read
3 mins  |
March 26, 2018
Slovaks are asking for ‘normalcy'
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

Slovaks are asking for ‘normalcy'

Ten years of EU membership have not eased Slovakia’s woes

time-read
4 mins  |
April 23, 2018
Making Peace With My Magnolia
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

Making Peace With My Magnolia

IT CROWDS THE HOUSE. IT SHEDS LEAVES. IT BLOOMS ONCE. AND YET ...

time-read
2 mins  |
April 16, 2018
Make A Difference
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

Make A Difference

Hurricane Maria Upended Puerto Rico – And Its Fishing Industry. Raimundo Espinoza Chirinos Is Helping In An Innovative Way.

time-read
6 mins  |
April 16, 2018
A More Complex View Of Afrikaans
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

A More Complex View Of Afrikaans

Supporters argue the language was born of a blend of cultures

time-read
4 mins  |
April 16, 2018
How The Rev. Patrick Desbois Unwittingly Turned Into A Leading Expert In The Methods Of Genocide
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

How The Rev. Patrick Desbois Unwittingly Turned Into A Leading Expert In The Methods Of Genocide

Like many people, the Rev. Patrick Desbois in 2014 had never heard of the Yazidis, the ethnic religious minority being decimated by the Islamic State (ISIS) in northern Iraq.

time-read
6 mins  |
April 23, 2018
Facing The Loss And Wages Of The Civil War
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

Facing The Loss And Wages Of The Civil War

JEFFERSON DAVIS’S WIDOW PONDERS A DEBT SHE FEARS WILL NEVER BE FULLY REPAID.

time-read
4 mins  |
April 23, 2018
"Cholitas' Take The Wheel
The Christian Science Monitor Weekly

"Cholitas' Take The Wheel

BOLIVIA – As recently as 10 years ago, Bolivia’s indigenous Aymara and Quechua women were socially ostracized and systematically marginalized.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 23, 2018