
Travelling while black: Seven travelogues you should readThe travelling while black movement foregrounds racial danger and discrimination around travel, while illuminating distinctive experiences.
by The Conversation
03-02-2023 12:46
in Books
Travelling while black: 7 South African travelogues you should read
Image by pexels
Travel writing in Africa is often associated with colonial ventures of the past or white adventure pursuits of today. But Africans themselves have long produced captivating travel texts in oral and written forms. We need to look beyond narrowly western or white accounts as travel writing is produced across the world by an extensive range of writers. Literary ezines (electronic magazines on the internet) dedicated to diverse travel writing are thriving.
--
That said, the cultures and literatures of travel from Africa have long been under-recognised by mobility studies. Exposing structures and norms that privilege white travel, as well as centering the voices of those on the move who haven't traditionally been counted as travellers, are important aspects of decolonising travel .
ALSO READ: Sho Madjozi released her debut children's book
The travelling while black movement foregrounds racial danger and discrimination around travel, while illuminating distinctive experiences that black travel brings. With this telling phrase as its title, Kenyan writer and analyst Nanjala Nyabola's ground-shifting book explores multiple dimensions of being a mobile African woman.
--
As a literary scholar of these books, I've recently published a research paper that explores how a range of contemporary popular travelogues by black South Africans offer fresh, often provocative, perspectives. The travelogues, mostly focusing on exploring Africa (including South Africa itself), bring to life the places visited and celebrate the acts of travel - while also reflecting deeply on what the travel means.
Travel in South Africa is no straightforward subject. It takes on heightened significance in the light of the country's history of colonialism and apartheid. Apartheid, South Africa's institutionalised system of segregation, attempted to limit or force black mobility and to regulate black travel in intensive ways.
In post-apartheid South Africa, much has been in flux. While race-based mobility laws are no longer in place, questions of black movement, border crossings and belonging are peaking. In many of the travelogues in my research, the writers reflect on how history, race, nationality, gender and other factors affect travel.
--
1. Vagabond by Lerato Mogoatlhe Journalist Lerato Mogoatlhe, loved on social media as Madam Afrika, shares her action-packed experiences of travelling to 21 African countries over five years in her debut book Vagabond: Wandering Through Africa on Faith (2019).
Blackbird Books She dedicates her adventures to those who had gone before , including her grandparents who could only travel in their dreams . What motivates her is the freedom to wander from place to place and the possibility of knowing the world beyond what's around my corner .
She sees travel on the continent as giving her the opportunity to experience being black and African without disguising or denying myself to fit in .
2. Niq Mhlongo's blog Along with tales of book hustles, visa hassles, local brews and astounding sights, novelist Niq Mhlongo reflects on how the past and present connect through journeying in his energetic travel blog.
On his 4,459km trip through Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, he emphasises that African travel enables the retracing of the history of our people that has not been properly documented or told .
3. Hardly Working by Zukiswa Wanner A multi-country African journey with the thrills and spills of public transport is the story of novelist Zukiswa Wanner's Hardly Working: A Travel Memoir of Sorts (2018) - on one level. She is also on the road to teach her son about the continent beyond the realms of a textbook .
Black Letter Media As a child of exiled South African and Zimbabwean parents, she has been transnationally mobile since childhood, but imbues this trip with special importance. It marks her 40th birthday and four decades since the 1976 Soweto uprising.
Through her journeying, she powerfully links up personal and historic milestones to reflect on her own life and a nation that hasn't lived up to its post-apartheid promises.
4. Reclaiming Home by Lesego Malepe Reclaiming Home: Diary of a Journey through Post-Apartheid South Africa (2018) is by author and scholar Lesego Malepe.
She Writes Press She returns from decades in the US to criss-cross the country of her birth over 11 months.
During apartheid the many discriminatory laws made travel for a black person very difficult , so she explores every corner of South Africa for herself and in memory of her brother.
As a political prisoner on Robben Island off Table Bay, Cape Town, for 22 years, her brother was taunted by the view of Table Mountain and all that lay out of reach.
5. Rainbow Nation, My Zulu Arse by Sihle Khumalo Travel writer Sihle Khumalo takes to the road to write his first book about his native South Africa in Rainbow Nation, My Zulu Arse (2019). While he is known for his upbeat approach (his brawny debut was Dark Continent, My Black Arse in 2016), he starts this journey at apartheid's Sharpeville massacre site in contemplative mode.
Umuzi He strikes a note of looking back as part of moving forward and connects his travel to historical sites, among others, to try and grasp where the country's headed.
Khumalo's book is far from solemn though. It rants and raves across the spectacular terrain of nine provinces, bringing to life dusty towns, forgotten communities, bright lights and open horizons.
He accentuates that t
Most recent headlines
02/07/2023
Our robust, comparable data provides trusted insights and gives media owners, buyers and planners the power to trade confidently.
ABC members and data subscrib...
02/07/2023
We'll be releasing The next set of ABC audited consumer media data covering the period January to December 2022 on Tuesday 21st February at noon.
When rele...
02/07/2023
We'll be releasing The next set of ABC audited consumer media data covering the period January to December 2022 on Tuesday 21st February at noon.
When rele...
01/05/2023
Our Chief Executive Simon Redlich was recently invited by Alliance for Audited Media (AAM) to share his views on what 2023 might hold. Read what Simon and other...
30/03/2023
CHANDLER, Ind. ERI will introduce a new UHF Television Bandpass Filter with improved insertion loss and a unique forced air colling system at the 2023 NAB Show,...
30/03/2023
SAN JOSE, Calif. Harmonic has announced that VertiCast Media Groups CSport, the Caribbean sports service streaming the Premier League, is using Harmonics VOS360...
30/03/2023
PARIS Dalet has announced that it will be showing new SaaS solutions that are designed to power modern, agile, and efficient digital content production, managem...
30/03/2023
PHILADELPHIA Comcast is reporting that it has reduced the electricity it takes to deliver each byte of data across its network by 36% since 2019. The efficiency...
30/03/2023
LAS VEGAS Miller Tripods will debut its Versa universal camera plate at the 2023 NAB Show, April 15-19, in Las Vegas....
30/03/2023
disguise Announces Collaboration with NVIDIA
Brie Clayton March 29, 2023
0 Comments
The Collaboration Will See disguise Integrate with NVIDIA Omniverse...
30/03/2023
Avid Unveils the Next Wave of NEXIS Storage Performance Innovation for Ultra Hig...
30/03/2023
The Durham Bulls will open the 2023 season at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on Friday, March 31, and front office staffers could not be more excited. Several w...
30/03/2023
How the Wachter Fellowship Helped These Students Launch Careers in L.A. The fellowship, offered through Berklees Career Center, provides students with the mea...
30/03/2023
Lawo Elasticity Special Online Event on 4th April 2023 and New Products and Ma...
29/03/2023
This Friday, March 31 is Trans Day of Visibility, a day to honor the contributions and existence of our trans community - from artists to colleagues to friends ...
29/03/2023
As Latin rap's global influence grows, the release of Myke Towers' highl...
29/03/2023
Tras el xito de su primera temporada, la audio serie original de Spotify Quema...
29/03/2023
Following the success of its first season, the Spotify Original scripted audio s...
29/03/2023
This week, American Vice President Kamala Harris visits Ghana, Tanzania, and Zam...
29/03/2023
SGL Carbon will present a new 50k carbon fiber at JEC World 2023. The new SIGRAF...
29/03/2023
Includes new Centra platform for broadcasters
Sioux Falls, USA - 29 March 2023
Sencore a leading broadcast equipment supplier and platform developer will ...
29/03/2023
TORONTO, Can. (March 29, 2023) Panavision, the entertainment industry's leading designer, manufacturer and rental provider of high precision optics and ca...
29/03/2023
The feature Soft follows three adolescent queer friends as they navigate the pardons and perils of summer break in the streets of Toronto. Written and directed ...
29/03/2023
Written and directed by Zach Braff, A Good Person tells the story of Allison (Florence Pugh), who unexpectedly befriends an elder gentleman named Daniel (Morgan...
29/03/2023
Sound Director Tadeusz Mieczkowski Selects DPA for Durability, Reliability and S...
29/03/2023
Newest solutions offer precise sound reproduction for the live stage.
DPA Microphones, the leading manufacturer of high-quality microphone solutions, unveils i...
29/03/2023
Avid_NEXIS_F2-SSD_1...
29/03/2023
RESTON Va. Comscore has announced that it is speeding up the delivery of TV viewing data to more local markets by expanding the availability of 48-hour TV measu...
29/03/2023
TV TECH: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trends at the 2023 NAB Show?...
29/03/2023
Contrast and Ratios The Key to Image Depth Colour Theory in DaVinci Resolve
Riccardo Luppi March 29, 2023
0 Comments
In this series, we go through ...
29/03/2023
Filmmaker Agos Bruera Brings Female Gaze to REVERSE
Brie Clayton March 29, 2023
0 Comments
Commercial production company REVERSE welcomes Agos Bruera t...
29/03/2023
Creative COW Job Listing: On-Location Video Editor in Newport, Wales
Brie Clayton March 29, 2023
0 Comments
On-location Video Editor
Looking for work...
29/03/2023
Creative COW Job Listing: Adobe After Effects Designer & Scripting Lead, London
Brie Clayton March 29, 2023
0 Comments
Adobe After Effects designer/scr...
29/03/2023
Spring 2023 Maxon One Release Adds Extraordinary Value
Brie Clayton March 29, 2023
0 Comments
Enhancements across the entire product line including Cin...
29/03/2023
A Remedy for Cancel Culture MacArthur Fellow Loretta J. Ross spoke about toxic internet culture and the virtues of calling in instead of calling out at a rece...
29/03/2023
The global streamers could face fines of up to £250,000 or be restricted in the UK entirely if they are found to have broken rules around harmful material
By J...
29/03/2023
ARRI Solutions designs, engineers, builds, and operates virtual production environments of all sizes
By Jenny Priestley
Published: March 29, 2023
ARRI Sol...
29/03/2023
The appointments follow Riedels recent acquisitions of Simplylive and SDNsquare
By Jenny Priestley
Published: March 29, 2023
The appointments follow Riede...
29/03/2023
NEW YORK Media SaaS provider Amagi has announced that Canela Media will be using the Amagi CONNECT free ad-supported streaming (FAST) marketplace to help it imp...
29/03/2023
NORWALK, Conn. In another example of how telcos and cable operators are working to attract cord-cutters by bunding streaming services with their broadband offer...
29/03/2023
New survey data from Parks Associates shows that subscription video services are nearly ubiquitous in U.S. homes, with 87% of US internet households having at l...
29/03/2023
Ross Video Makes it Real at NAB Show 2023
Brie Clayton March 28, 2023
0 Comments
Company Unlocks Video Production Innovation through Hyperconverged P...
29/03/2023
Job Listing: St. Louis CITY SC Summer Internship Opportunity
Brie Clayton March 28, 2023
0 Comments
St. Louis CITY SC Summer Internship Opportunity
L...
29/03/2023
WRAL-TV's Elizabeth Gardner is honored by Raleigh Magazine as one of the Women Shaping Raleigh 2023 at an event at One Glenwood on Monday, March 27.
Raleig...
29/03/2023
110 Years of Durham Bulls Baseball Celebration & Kids Run The Bases complete Opening Weekend 2023
The Back-to-Back Triple-A National Champion Durham Bulls begi...
29/03/2023
Embrace Spring with Boston Conservatory Orchestra at Groton Hill Music Center On April 8, the orchestra celebrates the changing seasons at an exciting new con...
29/03/2023
Bernice Chan on How Berklee Helped Jumpstart Her Career as a Publicist A panelist at Career Jam 2023, the recent alum discusses landing her current position a...
29/03/2023
It turns out there are secret ways to search for content to watch on Netflix....
29/03/2023
Standard General said it filed a lawsuit asking a U.S. Appeals Court to order th...
29/03/2023
At a time when retail networks are growing in dollar volume and sophistication, Dollar General worked with LiveRamp to strengthen its connection with its custom...