Society x Reality

SOCIETY X REALITY

Q & A with up & coming teen blogger

Purple Hibiscus

Feminism

Lights!

Camera!

Action!

SINCE 2017

SXR Magazine

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Content

Editor's Note 4 Team 5 Feminism 8-9 Purple Hibiscus 10 -12 Ser Tudo Poem 13 Entre os lagos 14 Poem Corner 15 Lights! Camera! Media! 18-20 Purple Hibiscus 21 Poem Corner 22 LGBTQA 24 Forbidden Love 26 Gender through the eyes of Islam 27 Jews, Gender & Media 28 Purple Hibiscus 29 Gender in the world of sports 33 Purple Hibiscus 34 Coconut 35 Word Search 36 Movie review 37 Teen blogger interview 39 Sweden Interviews 40 References 41 -3-

From the Editor Media Will either Shape you or Break you

The term media can be defined as the main means of mass communication ( broadcasting, publishing, and the Internet).

How, when and where information is broadcasted influences the manner in which that information is received, and thus impacts our lives greatly .

In the process of being “woke” and with social media on the rise, and trends such as #MenAreTrash and #TalkingRainbowNation trending on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram daily, it is vital that we know how media portrays, influences and shapes the lives of not only the youth but a large percentage of our population. In this issue of SocietyXReality we will be challenging gender stereotypes, exploring the impact media has on our lives and bringing to light “taboo” topics that are more often than not, simply “swept under the rug” such as the wage gap, the glass ceiling , sexual harassment, polygamy, LGBTQ IA+ and gender inequality.

You will find these various articles on pages 6, 12, 18 and 24

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Team:Â Kamogelo Digojane Social media strategist

Irasema Filipe Art director

Thimna Simelela Designer

Ariel Katz Copy-Editor -5-

" I am strong, I am powerful, I am beautiful "- Hidden figures -6-

"There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish." —Michelle Obama

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EXPRESS FEMINISM !

Where & How it all begun

Feminism [ Noun: ] feminism the advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes.

Media has become a big way to convey different types of information to the public's eye, information can either be positive or negative. Social media isn’t just twitter or facebook and etc. it is the news reports, magazines, television adverts and shows and the radio. In order to make people talking and start debating on media, the article of information has to be catchy and has to relate more with the society we are living in. Let’s see how, media has affected the feminism movement.

"WHEREBY ALL WOMEN WANTED THE RIGHT TO VOTE"

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Objective of feminism is EQUALITY & STEREOTYPES! All women all wanted to be treated equally and fair. feminism is a movement that wishes to end gender stereotypes between men and women. They state, Gender Stereotypes exist because... "Women and Men assume different roles interchangeably because it is more efficient. They are using men as much as men use women. This is why the survived until today. Because there is a reciprocal benefit for both."However, it could be said that Feminism has lost its aim and true objective due to burgeoning exploitation of the equality movement in the result of demonization. It was predicted that the trend of feminism would die out as the society we live in today. People just do not care as much, a lot of women these days take their stance. Personally I think that gender stereotypes can be changed with no political activism needed

Feminism goes back to the 19th century however it was fully recognized in United States in America in the early 20th (1910) When all women of all color came together in a well -known movement known as the women suffrage. Whereby all women wanted the right to vote which was labeled as the first of the three waves of feminism. 1960 was the second wave it’s purpose was to give women equal rights and laws just like the men of united states of America. lastly the third wave is a still ongoing wave it begun in the 1990’s as the continuation of all the failed attempts in wave 2.

"WHY THE SACEND WAVE FAILED. "

During the 60s and the 70s the main source of media was radios and newspapers.The newspaper companies wouldn’t publish the women's movement concerns they would just solemnly ignore it. Which gave women at the time a harder time to get their movement across the nation. That is the main reason the second wave took really long time to get done and also the main reason why the second wave failed.

As the years went by technology advanced, which made women advertise more their concerns and their rights in various ways. As they also year by year gained a bit more people's attention.

" Twitter has become the most popular interactive media" Now in present day, social media is the way to go. It is such a confident way to get your message across to the public in a much faster way. Twitter has become the most popular interactive media. 21st technology has made the point and the objective of feminism get across social media platforms in a much more easier way. From the late 20th century to no the earliest 21st century there are more a less 315 known feminist activist in the world. Our very own well-known feminist activist are: Olive Schreinar 1855-1920 Diana E.H Russell 1938 Shamima Shaikah 1960- 1998

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• BEST SELLER

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Purple Hibiscus !

IRASEMA FILIPE

Purple Hibiscus is a novel located in Nigeria during a time of political uprising. The main character and narrator of the novel is a girl by the name of Kambili Achike. The novel brings to light many issues faced by many people in society such as domestic and child abuse.

Kambili and her brother Jaja, were brought up by their devoted Catholic father, Eugene Achike and an introverted and humble mother Beatrice. Eugene, Kambili’s father works at a newspaper company called Standard, where they criticize the government and discuss difficult matters which very few newspapers dare to speak about. However, as the novel unfolds we see many different sides to Eugene. Whilst at work Eugene encourages people to fight for their rights and express their freedom of speech, however at home he is an abusive dictator who shows very little compassion for his family.

The Achike family silently suffer in pain, which at times is often mistaken for love from their beloved father and husband. Eugene is an orthodox Roman Catholic, a far cry from his sister Ifeoma and their father. Ifeoma is also a Roman Catholic but incorporates and does not frown upon her Igbo culture. She has been one of the greatest influences in Kambili’s life. The novel gives you a different perspective and insight on how other people live their lives and the trials, tribulations and sacrifices people make in order to have a family. The novel has multiple characters who go against the “general stereotypes” that are said about Africa .

Gender plays a big role in Nigeria, as is evident as Adichie high lights many different themes and views which show the flaws within not only the Igbo culture but society. Ifeoma portrays a strong,independent character in the novel as she has gone through many up-hill battles but despite challenges such as losing her husband and being financially unstable , she has managed to succeed.

This novel is recommended for viewers of the age 16+ as it is thought provoking and has the power to educate, empower and to inspire people to look beyond their own circumstances and to learn about the world around them.

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Ser Tudo

Posso ser tudo o que quiser Mulher, esposa, amante…

Posso ser chuva ou sol E tudo isto num instante!

Posso ser alegria, tristeza Dor, saudade, ternura…

Ser flor ou lago Ou simplesmente - verdura!

Posso ser agua pura Ou vinho embriagador, Posso ser um vendável Ou simplesmente - amor!

Posso ser amarga E também doce como o mel, Ser seara ao vento Ou simplesmente - fel!

Posso ser eu mesma Somente mesma eu, Sou tudo aquilo que disse Nao quero ter nada de teu!

Em mim tudo isto existe: Revolta, dor, sentimento, Alegria, tristeza, Calma e sofrimento - Maria Frazao Dos Santos - 13 -

Entre os lagos

Esperei-te do nascer ao pôr do sol e não vinhas, amado.

Mudaram de cor as tranças do meu cabelo e não vinhas, amado.

Limpei a casa, o cercado Fui enchendo de milho o silo maior do terreiro Balancei ao vento a cabeça da manteiga e não vinhas, amado.

Chamei os bois pelo nome Todos me responderam, amado.

Só tua voz se perdeu, amado, Para lá da curva do rio Depois da montanha sagrada entre os lagos Ana Paula Tavares

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Poem corner These two poems which are written in Portuguese that analyze feminism in their culture from Portugal (Maria Eugenia Frazao dos Santos) and Angola (Ana Paula Tavares). The first poem it is about a woman who expresses her anger and pain as she was hurt by her lover due to this statement she can be anything in world at anytime. For instance in the first stanza “ I can be anything, a woman, a wife, a lover. I can be

This is a stereotypical way an African woman would wait for their loved ones to come back from the city.

How African women are always waiting and being loyal to their spouse. Whereas the Portuguese woman she portrays her independence and her confidence as to how she doesn’t need a man in her life to tell her what to do. She fights until the very end, with a lot of pride, independence and eagerness for emancipation.

the rain or the sun and everything at the same time ! … I can be anything, by just being me! I am everything that I said I was. I don’t need anything coming from you !”

“ I can be anything, a woman, a wife and a lover”

The second poem is about a rural Angolan women, who longs for her lover who works in the city to come back to her. She awaits loyally and patiently over a decade or more. In the first stanza she says: “ she wait for him from dawn to sunset, over a season of harvest, Until the color of the braided hair changed color.” in the last stanza she says how she has waited for a long period of time and how she kept being loyal to him and has hope for him to come back.

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“No woman can call herself free who does not control her own body.” ― Margaret Sanger

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Lights! Camera! Media! written by Mihlali Velleman

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Who even knows what gender is - does it refer to one’s birth genitals – male/ female or is it the sex that one chooses to identify with? So, can you be born of female gender and decide to be a man? In this instance you say you “were” ever a female?

Or, can you decide the gender of your choice as and when you decide - female today and male tomorrow? Who even has power to decide on one’s gender? As if the male - female option isn’t complex enough, we then have transgender, gender fluids, gender neutrals and the list is endless. If gender refers to one’s birth genitals or “altered” birth genitals, how should ones sexual preference be treated or considered in the intellectual discourse of all things gender? It is a difficult trying to box people into neat descriptions as media would have us believe they have this covered. As the youth of 1976 that sought to be revolutionary in its fight against apartheid, so is the youth of today challenging all stereotypes on what it means to be a particular gender.

When one considers how the media portrays gender, revolutionary as we might think we are (and not in the dark ages) , stereotypes still prevail. The adverts, social media, news , print media, music videos - all still depict the female gender ( in its broadest definition ) as fragile, pretty, “need to be saved” characters by their male counter parts ( in it’s broadest definition)strong, ambitious, masculine, hero, “life savers”.

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" Who even has power to decide on one’s gender? "

An interesting point though, is that in instances where same sex relationships are depicted, there is still need to depict one of the partners as weak, vulnerable and dependent “ the female in the relationship” and the other party as the stronger caretaker “ the male in the relationship”. No matter how liberal media pretends to be, it always goes back to the inbox stereotypical depictions of gender.

In the world of the sophisticated, educated and wealthy- it is females that stay home and raise the children after giving up their careers to support their male spouses. The females are taken care of translating incapable of taking care of themselves by the provision of credit shopping cards, vacations abroad and all for small price of pleasing the partner by looking pretty, not challenge the provider and being forever grateful for the lifestyle provided by the sole, strong provider. Should you recognize this forced power imbalance- you are in the few wealthy bracket of our society that many is made to aspire to “ when I am old” I will marry a rich caretaker In the world of the less sophisticated, less educated, who does not aspire to be in a polygamous relationship/ marriage? Shows like Isibaya and uMseleku on Mzantsi Magic, the president of the country, the kings of both the Zulu and Swati nations

who are sworn to polygamy as their traditional birthright as men- who does not aspire to be one of many in the polygamous marriage?!Again, if the man can take care of you “weak” women, the fact that you are a member of a union, a marriage, a team should not matter right ? Contrary to this, in another popular soap opera on SABC 1, Generations: The Legacy , when the lead female actress challenged traditional stereotypes by wishing to marry two husbands, powerful, wealthy and capable as she was of taking care of her “weaker” spouses, men in this instance, her family declared her mad and in social media the society was “trending” in putting pressure on the producer to change the script lest they give their female partners ideas. In the land of the male species, the producers made a hue mistake by scripting this strong, well achieved business women, leader of her clan as having lost her mind, went against the ancestors in her quest to marry two men she loved and has been punished since. As we think we are liberal, beyond stereotyping gender roles- I beg to differ. Does the media reflect our challenged state of gender identity and gender roles - I think so.

So whether you are educated , liberated, poor, wealthy, progressive and not a believer in stereotyping - if the media in all its platforms is holding a mirror as a reflection of who we are as a society, it looks like we are still living in the dark ages. The male gender of the species hunts, provides shelter and safety to the female gender that is expected to stay at home, birth children, cook , clean, look pretty and be grateful.

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Do we have examples of those that have crossed this depiction- yes and not without rejection from the judgemental eye of the public. Margaret Thetcher (first female British priminister ), Ellen Sirleaf Johnson( the first female president of Liberia and in Africa), Joyce Banda ( the first female president of Malawi ) -they all suffered, were not regarded as leaders but as men in female clothes, cold witches on brooms “ wannabe� males. The opposite is true, where their spouses are considered weak, taken care of by their female spouses. Put simply, in the 21st century, the first, developing or emerging world economies are not ready for this.

Give it another century, we will be ready to embrace outside the box, we will be ready to consider transgender, gays, lesbians, gender fluids and all preferences that one prefers. However the media is not helping in transitioning us from the stone age !

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• BEST SELLER •

Purple Hibiscus BY: MIHLALI VELLEMAN

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RATING: 4/5 STARS * HIGHLY RECOMENDED: FOR READERS SEEKING TO BROADEN THEIR UNDERSTANDING IN TERMS OF CULTURE, ABUSE AND THE IMPACT THIS HAS ON INDIVIDUALS. In this novel Adichi tackles global issues such as domestic and child abuse. We see the world through the eyes of a young Nigerian girl named Kambili, a victim of abuse and suffering, done unto by her highly ordained Catholic father. Eugene ( Kambili’s father) is an orthodox catholic who frowns upon African tradition and embraces a western approach to life , as was taught to him when he was in boarding school and will thus go to extreme lengths to raise his children in this manner.

Throughout the novel, we witness Kambili blossom from a introverted, submissive young girl to a confident, joyful and spirited girl, a far cry form where she was in the beginning of the novel. Kambili’s life is changed forever when there is instability in her country caused by a military coup, thus leading to members of her family emigrating to the United States of America and her mom makes a drastic decision to put the Achicke family out of it’s misery one and for all .

DICLAIMER: This novel is not suited for young reader as it contains content of a mature nature .

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Poem

Corner

Feminism, yes the big elephant in the room. “ We teach girls to shrink themselves , to make themselves smaller. We say to girls “you can have ambition, but not too much” you should aim to be successful but not too successful. Otherwise you will threaten the man. “ Chimamanda Ngozi Flawless Beyonce Most if not all black men believe that feminism is a movement created by white people to create division and mislead black women (as if they haven’t done all of that themselves).

If it were up to these men, we would be stay at home females who do nothing but tend to their needs.

But feminism says “to hell with that! We will do whatever we want whenever we want” Yes, feminism opposes patriarchy. Feminism teaches women that they are in control of their lives, that their bodies belong to them and just them and that they matter, that they are worth gold and so much more.

Feminism is inclusive, it includes transgender, queer, lesbian and gay women. I mean it would really be uncanny if we were to exclude other women who are not heterosexual after we have been excluded from life since the beginning of time.

As much as feminism has its own shortfalls (believe you me, there are a lot of those), it has brought closer women from all walks of all life, giving them a safe space where they can share their stories.

May we one day move from the notion that feminism is here to destroy and actually see it for what it really is.

-Sisongo Mabutho - 22 -

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LG BT Q I By: Thimna Simelela

The initialism LGB movement which start in the 1980s however it only truly began in the 1990s, when the later T which stands for transsexual which joined the infamous acronym. The now LGBT movement is an abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender.

The movement is a political ideology and social movement which stand for the full acceptance of those that are part of the community, in our society. They are passionate in the beliefs they uphold towards their opinions which are most centred to their own liking.

Being a homosexual was to live in exile, there were only a few cities in Canada that allowed homosexual acts however just down below in the USA it was not allowed to be sexually intimate with someone of the same sex due to it being ungodly. The price of being gay in the olden dates between the 50s to the early 80s, in that day and age you were considered to be poor due to your sexual orientation, and as a result you would be given jobs such as being a waiter. Most however, chose to live within the shadows within the “straight world” and were given a term which was called “passing”.

Around this time people didn’t really believe in gay people and it was something they couldn’t really relate to, they never considered that they could of been gay lawyers, doctors or even “average” people living in the suburbs.

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Love or Lust was something people had to hide from back as in those day should one act upon these feelings, publicly humiliated would be the least of their problems, as if you were caught being intimate with someone of the same sex, it could cost you your job.The police then made it was an illegal doing due to them having to be picked up from public places and committing acts of prostitution.

In 1965 the first gay protest took place in north america (Canada), 4 years later it was then legal to have same sex marriage and it was then said to be held in the privacy of your own home.

In the United States it all began with “drag queens”, mixed raced homosexuals & also young queers who fought back at a police raid.

Say it loud & proud “I am gay & I’m proud.”

Society now finally can have accept people who are interested in the same sex , and as a result it is something most can finally open up to and we now see it as a lifestyle choice. After the mid 80s the LGBT community formed and has been growing strong since then.

Forbidden Love By: Thimna Simelela

Tiwonge Chimbalanga is a transgender who was sentenced to 14 years in Malawi for getting engaged to a cisgender man. She was then later released as a result of multiple organizations. She is currently a refugee, living in Cape Town. She is an important public figure in the LGBTQIA+ community. Chimbalanga was born and raised in Malawi and at a young age she was bewitched by one of the villagers and was forced to run away from home. She started working as a cook and cleaner at a lodge owned by Jean Kamphale who was a local politician. She would identify herself as a woman; however Kamphale saw a few features in her that did not fully possess feminine features and was worried about what people would say about the unusual new maid.

Chimbalanga proved to be a hardworking employee and had become something of attraction at the bar. Around this period of her life she had meet up with her future husband Steven Monjeza.

Monjeza who was a local drunk and layabout in the community started hooking up with Chimbalanga The two were later on gifted with a small house right behind the lodge where they lived, thanks to Kampale, and not long after the couple had decided to make it official and wed. The two hosted a chinkhoswe which is a traditional engagement ceremony. Kamphale offered his lodge and to pay. At the time it was the first ever recorded homosexual act in the country. Just after a few days of the marriage people heard about the two and were curious to see for themselves. The married couple were later arrested and with “ carnal knowledge against the order of nature.� During the trial, both Kamphale & the pastor who wed them had to testify against Chimbalanga due to her not fully explaining what she was. They served 14 years in prison and were later released. Chimbalanga has been exiled in South Africa since 2010. Before the two were released they had been through a few problems and later on divorced. Monjeza remarried and had been in and out of prison numerous times. As for Chimbalanga, who had gained a bit of fame from her past, turned her attention to alcohol and now is a heavy drinker which she says helps her forget about her past.

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"Men and women have equal rewards for their deeds" Quran 3:195

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Gender through the eyes of Islam By: Ariel Katz The Quran states that the man of the house is given the right of guardianship and superiority over the family structure in order to prevent conflict between spouses. Women are expected to humble themselves, to behave accordingly and to be submissive before their husband as Allah(meaning God in Arabic) sees men as superior beings. The role of women according to Islam is to satisfy their husbands and bear his children. Women are expected to be completely covered up with little to no skin visible.

Multiple media sources portray Muslim women as oppressed and defenceless. The media over amplifies the Muslim involvement in the war on terrorism in Afghanistan and portrays mainly male Muslims as terrorists. However, many Muslims have taken a stand against this generalization and opened the eyes of many news outlets. The FBI has done research and has stated that the percentage of Muslims involved in terrorist acts is less than 1 out of 16 acts of terrorism.

Even though many strides are being taken by Muslim communities to correct this generalization that refers to all Muslim women as being oppressed and that all-Muslims (predominantly males) are terrorists many western media outlets are not changing their stances on the Muslim religion as many of them have been affected by the war on terrorism.

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" JEWS , GENDER & MEDIA"

BY ARIEL KATZ In a traditional Jewish household, women are seen as the more spiritual member of the house so they are only expected to attend shul (Jewish form of church) on a Friday night after they have prepared the home for the Shabbat dinner. Men have to wear specific garments and attend shul every day of the week in order to be as spiritual as women. Women only have to wear a dress as opposed to men who need to wear a Kippah(a piece of cloth to cover the head) and a Tzitzit(a religious garment almost like a vest with tassels at the end) but in shul during service women are not expected to wear anything specific whereas all men need to wear Tefillin(leather strings wrapped around the arm and head with little boxes that contain the Shema(a very religious prayer)) and a tallit (like the Tzitzit but much larger and worn more like a cloth than a vest) in order to be closer to god. Men and women are segregated as the men need to focus harder on prayer in order to be closer to God whereas women, according to the Torah do not need to over exert themselves in doing this as they are seen to be closer to God. In the Jewish society men and women are seen as equals, thus women have the exact same rights as men and according to the Torah, should she deem her husband unfit for her she has the right to inicite a divorce as the Torah states, “a woman is not expected to make love to a man who cannot reciprocate that love”.

Jewish men in the media are portrayed as having many stereotypes such as stinginess and being the kings of the media whereas women are portrayed as submissive and as stay at home wives. Many feminine linked things such as household products and kitchen appliances in the world are link to women through the media and women are sexually objectified in Jewish media.

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- BEST SELLER-

Purple Hibiscus ARIEL KATZ

Purple hibiscus is a very real story that takes place in the country of Nigeria. This book tackles many difficult topics such as domestic abuse and child abuse as swell as the development of a child (in this case Kambili) after being abused by her father.

However, in the eyes of the community the father is a wonderful man and he is even seen as a leader of their community. The state of Kambili’s family throughout the book slowly deteriorates and the mother begins to poisoned the father, then the aunty leaves due to the coup in the country. This represents the destabilization of the Nigerian government and the failure of the country itself.

The book also tackles the colonized consciousness theme as the father is obsessed with speaking English and bringing his children up as Christians. However, when Kambili goes to her grandparents’ house and they are Igbo and speak the indigenous language a lot.

The father sees them as a terrible influence on Kambili and the country.

This is a not a book for young audiences as it tackles a lot of sensitive topics and the colonized consciousness themes.

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"The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal" Aristotle

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