Community scholar and activist from UKZN’s Centre for Civil Society (CCS), Mr Thando Manzi.

 

Community scholar and activist from UKZN’s Centre for Civil Society (CCS), Mr Thando Manzi, was recently in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to speak to members of unions affiliated to the CSP Conlutas federation.

Manzi discussed the shared struggles among Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries and in turn promoted the notion of international solidarity between the countries.

He shared recent developments in the South African political sphere, including the expulsion of Numsa from Cosatu.

The death of his best friend who was electrocuted, ignited Manzi’s interest in activism. His understanding of why people connected to electricity illegally spurred him to question and challenge government and society struggles, leading him to him joining in protest actions.

‘I would leave my home in Cato Manor every day to travel up Rick Turner Road to a former whites-only Roman Catholic school with the awareness that I risked losing touch with my community which encouraged me to engage in community struggles at a very young age. I began fighting for a united African society because Cato Manor is also a home for immigrants from Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Angola, the DRC and Malawi,’ said Manzi

Manzi was often guided by his activist mother, Ms Faith ka-Manzi, also a scholar at CCS. Speaking about her son and his achievements and his goals for community development, she said: ‘Thando continues to be an inspiration to all of us. Right now he is involved in a community initiated movement in Cato Manor. They meet quite often and are dealing with socio-economic and environmental challenges faced by people in our area.

‘His passion makes him speak out against all kinds of injustices and right now he is engaging with people on a personal and a community level about prejudice against foreign African people as nothing freaks him out like xenophobia. In 2008, while on his way to school, he witnessed a xenophobic attack and vowed to speak out against it. But as a young adult he also does several other things outside the struggle, such as chilling with his friends, poetry and rapping,’ she said.  

As a Dennis Brutus community scholar, Manzi does research on community issues. In 2013, he headed the South Africa section of the University of Olso’s research into urban slums in South Africa, Kenya and India.

He also travelled to Brazil to share South African activists’ experiences with the world soccer organisation, Fifa, ahead of the soccer world cup. ‘I spoke about the protests prior to the world cup and the impact the tournament had on ordinary people’s lives and the economy,’ said Manzi.

He said his goal was to become a role model to young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

‘I am currently participating in an initiative started by concerned Cato Manor residents called Umkhumbane Multi-purpose Initiative, which looks at social issues in our community. Our ultimate goal is to start a forum whereby all the Brics nations communities are able to share their struggles and promote international solidarity. This initiative is derived from the Brics from Below organisation but will be called Communities from Below,’ he said.

Manzi has been invited to Brazil in June for an International Network Summit by CSP Conlutas which will be attended by delegates from South America, Asia, Europe and Africa.