We don’t look up to the African man anymore for he does not live up to his role.
This moving piece about The African Man was a contribution to the “Faces of a New Generation” project by Simphiwe Phukwane.
She participated in the project and was a great help behind the scenes yet didn’t want her photographs published. She tragically passed away before the project was completed. Publishing this piece as well as my tribute to her are my way of celebrating the beautiful young woman she was.
The feature image of this article was taken during her photoshoot at Constitution Hill which I feel is very fitting. The precinct is a living museum that tells the story of South Africa’s journey to democracy. The site is a former prison and military fort that bears testament to South Africa’s turbulent past. The photograph shows her sitting in front of the door of the Constitutional Court of South Africa which endorses the rights of all South African citizens and symbolises so much of what she believed in.
“THE AFRICAN MAN
We don’t look up to the African man anymore for he does not live up to his role.
As a figure of protection, he would make sure the home is a safe place to be, well to sustain life in it. Make sure no trespassers intrude this forte. He then by all means gets the people in the home to feel they can rely on him.
As a provider he gives love and hope. Beyond material gifts and comforts he gives his times. This he does not only give to the family but to the community so he is known and stands out. He was then seen as the pillar of the community, to run to in need of help, to thank him in times of joy.
Now that same man is deserting his responsibilities and now betrays the community he is to be the pillar of. He breaks walls of support built by him so he can steal and betray the same community. The most prized possessions of this community are brought down by them, pride, esteem and worth.
The family is now dysfunctional because the head has left; the neck is to take up its place. She then is mocked by the community saying she has taken the man’s role but what is she to do when the man has left all this to her. Because of him, we raise sons who do not know what the role of the man is, daughters who have lost trust in the man.
The African man has left sorrow in the hearts that once trusted him for he has humiliated and stole from them. He has lost his stand and needs to take it back.”
Simphiwe Phukwane
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