Why Awethu Initiative?

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Apartheid was a system of institutionalized racism that forcibly removed non-white people from their homes and placed them in barren flatlands, as their original lands were then allocated to white people. Due to Apartheid policies, non-white children grew up at an enormous economic and social disadvantage compared to white children. 

Although Apartheid theoretically ended in the 1990s, the aftermath of Apartheid is still very much prevalent today. There is a significant color divide between the rich and disenfranchised communities. White people live in wealthy and spacious areas of land. “Colored” people have middle/low incomes and live in the more densely populated areas but still have a stable roof. Black people live in shanties made of tin foil in immensely populated flatlands, where every rainstorm brings flooding, death, and illness.  

In Cape Town, South Africa, the same flatlands, such as the Philippi Village, still hold hundreds of thousands of families in close confines. They suffer from various illnesses, including HIV, AIDS, tuberculosis, and other deadly viruses, at a higher rate than their white counterparts. Students do not have access to electricity in their shanties, making it difficult or impossible for children to complete their homework most nights. The children, therefore, grow up at an enormous economic and social disadvantage compared to children from wealthier neighborhoods, due to limited educational resources. Over 50% of students do not graduate from high school and therefore do not have the foundation necessary to get jobs and enact change in their community.