Massacre at Sharpville 1960

Many of us South Africans know the story (should), but do we really KNOW the story like we follow our favorite celebrities (maybe- This is the opportunity to brush it up). At school we were told a"The passage of blacks through white areas required, by law, that blacks parry passbooks at all times. On March 21 some 20 000 gathered in the township of Sharpville ( Google maps it). Police opened fire, killing "69" and injuring about 180. Most of the wounds were to the back (while fleeing). Police Commander D.H. Pienaar: "If they do these things, they must learn their lessons the hard way" This is an image some of the aftermath of the carnage. The point of history is not to change it or merely know but to sympathize with all parties involved. The revolutionaries were fighting for human rights and dignities in the face of death. Imagine being on that street or as a nearby township dweller hearing that your friends/family are dead. Then imagine that being a normal part of life. The oppressive government trying to hold intact its civilization and life-hood based on true hearten believed colonialist views of race and a mass duped (bubble life society). You just a young family man working in a factory living in the hills trying to raise a family and make a living and the news comes to you that there was an illegal riot in the townships but the police managed to contain.

The rest of the world only really acted when they saw the famous picture of Hector Peterson slain in fleeing arms: A trip to the apartheid museum instead of Ster Kernikor or Numetro??? (suggestion)

Knowledge is power. We all want power through the materialistic pursuits. Shaya shayaring your wife or belittling the financially less fortunate are all examples of this. (You can think of many more you and I tried just today). The beauty of life is in its irony, we were given choice but most of us will go with the flow and never decide a path, whats yours? Whatever it is. There is no time like the now.

Maybe, (inspiration- bodily chemical process) Take a look at the pictures then go further and learn something more, fulfillment is in your hands:

https://www.google.co.za/search?q=massacre+at+sharpeville&client=firefox-a&hs=d4n&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&channel=sb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=FzXEU6XlBdLe7AbGj4GQCg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1138&bih=561#imgdii=_

Children Sleeping on Mulberry Street (Street street arabs in Sleeping Quarters). New York, NY, USA, c.1889.

These are "street arabs" a name labelled on the nomadic-(hence arab) street children of 19th century New York, abandoned and neglected in ways that would be illegal to do to a dog today. They are piled up sleeping over a grated vent seeking refuge from the frozen streets above.

This is a one of the multitude of photos taken by Austrian born photographer Jacob Riis and published in the book "How the Other Half Lives: Studies among the Tenements of New York". An absolute classic and 1890 sensation.

If you have ever tried to sleep while leaning against a wall, in winter, you may have an idea how it would be to do that for days on end outside in the snow (not really). Chances are, That, you, reading this, right now. Means you are on this side of the "half" of the population. What does this mean?. That you have no idea how the people in your downtown city live. In abandoned buildings and shacks? That they live on less than R50 a week? I don't know (Me writing this means, i am on this side of the "half"). Jacob Riis blamed the apathy of the wealthy and rich (relatively and in comparison: means you) for the socioeconomic unlivable conditions. His empathy and exposure of the conditions, through images that were refused by newspaper publishers of the day for being too disturbing, made an impact over the next ten years as policies and conditions were improved for the area.

The reality at play here is that this is a continuing and inherent aspect of society especially a capitalist one. There have been relative and various improvements compared to then but in most places they are unable to keep up with inflation and other economic factors. The ensuing rise in crime rates, drunkenness and reckless behaviour are consequences of a lifestyle limited to a future of "how am I going to eat tonight". No ambition and self worth mutilation results in questions of "how can girls as young as fourteen sell themselves?" and "boys even younger having a kill or b killed mentality?". The idea that money is the root of all evil is a sad misconception that unfortunately blinds many, from the true powers at play. which are ourselves.

If you believe in change, then you have the potential to turn the wheels. Most people prefer to be ignorant to it and and even those who wish to know till their are numb to it all, are still ignorant as long as their on this side of the "half".

So what will we do (you and I) ? We will create awareness, knowledge and empathy within ourselves because the only cure we really need, is that for the disease of the mind. The rest will be a natural consequence of human nature.

Ernesto "Che" Guevara 1960

Just think about it; OK?
TIME Magazine's coined "most famous photograph in the world". This photo was released as though timed, just after "el Che" was executed (CIA-assisted) in Bolivia. A world icon of rebellion and one of the most influential people of the 20th century through his romanticized fight for a socialist Cuba, driven by a moral debate against the poverty striking capitalist Ideology. Once a medical student (clever boy), he could not handle the atrocities of the results of the American economic stronghold in South America. The Cuban revolution, in which he was a pivotal figure lead to the Cuban Missile Crisis one of the biggest panics of the USA. This merely opens the door to the cold war and what was really happening after WW2. Where half the world was socialist and the other capitalist. It is obvious which one won out eventually, but imagine a different world. Open your horizons to a world where you could be anything you want to be to contribute to humanity without placing money (man made- consumerist eventuality) in the equation. At the same time we shall consider the businessmen and moguls of the 20th century with dreams of changing and helping the world with great companies and hard work which need capitalism to flourish. Just think about it. That's all.

Then share your thoughts