Fav quote: "Great powers of the world may have done wonders in giving the world an industrial look, but the great gift still has to come from Africa - giving the world a more human face." Steve Biko
Why donate to RU? The quote by Biko asks us concretely to demonstrate how we intend to bestow on it the gift of humanity. In this regard, we note that the world is defined by power relations that are largely economic and/or class related. However, what the post-2008 world has allowed us to do is to be more bold in our assessment of prevailing theories and philosophies of what is and what can be. Put differently, we are now in a world which is more respective of question prevailing 'truths'. In order to begin to correctly frame our questions (i.e. problematise) and analyse the terrain in which we find ourselves, we require a highly educated and intellectual cohort of young Africans. That cohort of young Africans will not mushroom out of thin air - we must take positive steps to make sure that that cohort will exist. In donating the small amounts that I do, I do so in the hope that my small action and the small actions of others, will lead to the creation of this cohort of highly educated young Africans. One hopes that this cohort of young people will then fully and correctly understand their task in relation to our continent and will rise to the occasion of bestowing on the world its long-delayed gift - giving it a more human face. The beginning of that journey, one hopes, will of course be centred on the African continent and its people.
That is my point of departure for all things I undertake. RU took positive steps in investing in my own journey while I was a student. I was afforded opportunities that I could not have been able to undertake on my own, and I understand that RU may also not have been able to afford me those opportunities without the support of its alumni and friends from across the world. Having being at the receiving end of RU's and alumni generosity, how can I not in turn want others to experience the fullness of the opportunities I had? The amount I donate is small indeed, equivalent to less than a main course at some of the restaurants in Cape Town. Therefore I think to myself, "huh, I forfeit one expensive meal a month so that a young person can one day contribute to our continent doing what it is destined to do...why not?"