Raymond Suttner, Notions of manhood: Initiation tragedies should not blind us to dangers beyond those that are part of public discourse

 

The ANC and the Minister of Health have correctly deplored the spate of deaths resulting from initiation practices, in the Eastern Cape and other areas.  Continue reading

Raymond Suttner, Mandela:strong, tough and tender

Mandela as boxerMadibaandchild

There is a myth that to be strong and manly one cannot also be tender and gentle. Mandela, in a range of ways dispels any such myth. Thereby his life is a challenge to tough and violent masculinities, that are all too prevalent in South Africa today. For Mandela there were times where he found it necessary to fight, both as a boxer and in MK, times where he had to show his strength as in prison. But this photograph with a baby is only one of a range of manifestations of his tenderness.