THE BIZARRE MODERN REALITY OF RAG 2023 – WHEN THE HOMIES DON’T PULL UP

RAG of Hope Day serves as an annual event where the university tries to give back to the community. Students are given the opportunity to raise money for charity by selling products made from recycled goods, and have the agency to choose what charities their proceeds are donated to. This year’s Coachella-themed Rag of Hope Day was held on 25 February at the RAG Farm, and due to the lackluster RAG of Hope Day last year, this year’s event had a lot to improve on from low attendance and limited stalls to very few attractions. Though post- COVID recovery blues were blamed last year, the same excuses could not be used again this year when the same problems reared their heads. In the bizarre modern reality of RAG 2023, it would not be far-fetched to say that the main issue this year is simply that the homies did not pull up to RAG.

The stalls – the cliché

UP RAG stalls did not live up to their potential. In concept, they should be a platform where students from across the University of Pretoria’s different pockets of activity sell creative wares that are recycled and environmentally friendly. While the notion inspires the idea of green innovation, students were met with the same succulents sold by different people. And consequently, RAG stalls have suffered from a yearly redundancy that has plagued the event. Aside from the forest of succulents in some or other painted recycled containers, coasters made from old CDs, corks or whatever the vendor deemed “cute”, continuously make a comeback. Another idea that has been exhausted is beaded jewelry, which did not fare well at the stalls this year. The free market has spoken; retire these ideas.

Innovation

Even though some stalls lacked creativity, others led the way with new and innovative ideas. These marvels ranged from Law House’s magnificent charcoal drawings created by Law House Chairperson Jeandré Otto, to the pet rock with a very human twist from Khutso and the Tower. Other standout stalls were House Ukuthula and Erica’s clay workshop and House Tau and Asterhof’s thrift stand that offered stylish, quality threads. What this should illustrate is that a stall does not have to be a one-stop shop for consumerist habits gone “green”, instead it is a place where awe and value is found in the care with which the goods were made.

That being said, many of the student vendors could give PDBY reasons why they believed that their stall was the greatest. Nyiko Baloyi of House Tau had the following to say about their stand: “It has the most unique things. Everyone at their stall is selling these little trinkets, but our stall feels like an actual shop. I can tell by how quickly our stuff is selling that people are really loving it, and that is why I think our stall is the best.” Perhaps on a less materialistic note, Keisha du Plessis of House Mags commented on the superior quality of their own stall: “We put a lot of love and spirit into what we did and put it all into the smallest details.”

TuksSport dropped the ball

Sports is a key feature of RAG of Hope Day’s festivities; however, due to poor logistics, TuksSport saw several games between the various teams experience delays or go without referees. An insider woman in the Law Faculty offered greater insight into the controversy: “So, as Women in Law, we put ourselves up to be volunteers for the day, and the main thing we were supposed to help with was sport. When we arrived to