The People Shall Govern

The writing presented in this paper attempts to break down the broad structures within which I exist. I would like to preface the document by stating that I see the writing and art presented in this paper as steps in a broader effort to gain agency and dignity for my community in South Africa and comrades around the world. I hope to examine the complexities of oppression experienced by and perpetuated within subaltern communities. It is imperative that we orient such discussions away from symptomatic issues such as race relations and reductive identity politics, focusing instead on deeper systemic problems such as class disparity and the lasting effects of our colonial past. I wish to first establish a foundational understanding of the violence experienced by colonised peoples and explore the means by which the global South has resisted coloniality and subjugation. It is my duty to honour my heritage and culture in my work and to refocus the discourse of art and culture born under these oppressive structures to reflect value systems that lead to a culture of protest and resistance. To evidence my work with cultures and cultural products without first recognising their rejection from these oppressive institutions would not allow for an honest understanding of their context and value and would only further their consumption as inferior entities. I aim to celebrate my culture outside the purview of the western institution and to utilise cultural resistance to said systems as the underpinnings of my own production. As Paulo Freire models, the fight for freedom as pursued by the oppressed is in part to save the oppressor who can no longer save themselves (Freire 18). Such efforts, though limited by their context, may present a starting point for honest discourse and potential internal shifts both systemically and individually. I thank you for giving me your time and recognise our interaction here as praxis, latent with the potential for change.