The Power of Strength

Hello all,

All is well in South Africa. For the past few days I have been staying in the township of KTC and Guguletu. I have been very busy videotaping and interviewing many people here to figure out the complexities behind HIV/AIDS...and believe me, there is a lot more to this issue than safe sex and poverty...

Two days ago, I arrive to JL Zwane Centre (Church) and hung out with members of the congregation. Together, we ate Gatsby, a popular sandwich in South Africa, filled with fries, eggs, steak, vegetables, and sauces..it's very comparable to a Big Mac in America...cheap and very greasy! I enjoyed it though. Later on, I met my House Mom Mama Bhusu and she cooked me a HUGE lunch...vegertables, meats, breads, and desserts! It was great. Afterwards, Manselisi and all of his friends, whose names I cannot pronounce, took me to a local beach on the Indian Ocean side of the area Strandfontein Beach. It was magnificent! The water was blueish-green and the sand was very fine...and did I mention the SUNSET?! AHH! To die! After the sun set, we went home. I ate a lovely dinner then showered (out of a bucket...yeah, you should ahve seen my face, but I'm used to it now and could care less) and went to bed in my bery comfortable bed.


Yesterday, Nombeko, an HIV/AIDS activist, community leader, researcher took me along on a journey to loval AIDS clinics and home visits. First, we stopped in KTC and visited the clinic there and boy was that a site. I have never seen so many sick people look so hopeless and distressed. It broke my heart because many of the people that travel to the clinics come from far away--miles, sometimes HUNDREDS of miles to get medicines. Additionally, I found out in an interview with one of the nurnes Enuw, that many people don't come to the clinics until it's too late...theyre beyond positive, they have full blown AIDS and generally don't have much time to live becase they have been sick for SOOO long.

Later in the evening, we wen tback home so I could nap because I've had a nasty bug for the past week and it has peeked within the last few days. When I woke up, we traveled to Nombeku around KTC, Guguletu, and Nyanga to remind people about the unplanned support group. It's summer holdidays, so many people have traveled home to other regions of the country and continent to be with family for the holidays, so many activities are delayed and or postponed until mid-january. The visits were so great. All of the people were infected with HIV/AIDS, but had the biggest smiles on their faces! Despite living in the worst conditinos you can imagine, many us these people were happy to be alive and celebrating the start of another year with their friends and family.

Today, I went to a support group at the Centre and was able to film multiple peolpe at once. Their stories were incredibly powerful and I cannot wait to show you. The stigma around HIV/AIDS is alarming...and so is the frequency of rape in violence against children is beyond appalling. The one lessson I have learned on this trip thus far, is the power of strength, mentally and physically. I have visited with nearly 30-40 peolpe with HIV/AIDS and they're all so strong...much stronger than you (or I) can imagine. They have to be strong, for themselves, but their families and loved ones because this disease is literally destroying their communities one person at a time.

Until next time, much love to all of you in the State and all of my new friends in other countries!

Jermaine