After hearing a brief history of District 6, we move onto the townships of Langa. Langa was originally made to house about 8,000 people and now there are approximately 50,000 living with in the township. Once we were in Langa, we went straight to the crèche and started to talk to the headmistress and the children. It was quite difficult in some cases, as the children did not speak the same language. One young girl came up to me and said, “How are you? to this I responded, “Good thanks, How are you? and she states “Fines Thanks. A few moments later I hear “How are you? coming from the same girl. Obviously she had learned that phrase and was just waiting to test it out. After standing with the children for a while, I squatted down to say hello to one of the children on the ground, however, as soon as I squatted down, I was knocked over by 3 children rushing at me wanting hugs. It touched me deeply that despite everything these children have gone through they still wanted to interact and be held. They were some of the friendliest children I have ever met and they soon latched onto me as a new friend.

We were given a tour of the classrooms and I was not surprised at how severely under-funded the classes were. They lacked in all the necessities: books, pencils, crayons, markers, and even paper. We asked the head of school if she would write down what they really needed in the school and for the most part it educational toys and coloring utensils. Just before we left I gave some of the supplies we had collected to the headmistress. I really hope that it does a little to help.

            With Vicky we have managed to set up a meeting with the headmaster of one of the local primary schools. We hope to have that meeting on Thursday and then distribute some of the supplies on Friday. Vicky appears quite enthused about our endeavor and she seems very willing to help in everyway possible. For children to attend the primary school it costs 120 Rand per semester, which is a little less than 19 dollars. Many families cannot afford this so they do not have to pay as school is mandatory. Because of this, the schools do not have the necessary money to buy basic supplies such as the pencils and pens, which is hopefully where we come in. As the children advance to the upper school to price increases to 180 Rand per semester, about 25 dollars. The families that cannot afford to pay for college then only have one option ensure that the children get good grades and hope for a scholarship. The majority of the people don’t have the means to send their children to college and because of this the people are stuck in a never-ending cycle within the township.

            After the visit with Vicky, we went to a little building where women make money for themselves. They create tablecloths and aprons by dying the fabric; others make beautiful woven articles from the scraps from clothing factories. These women keep 75% of what the woven piece sells for and also gives them somewhere to talk and make friends. It is allowing these women to provide for themselves and save up money. It is amazing what these women can create when they are given the opportunity to succeed.

6:00PM – After returning to the hotel, we went out into District 6 to watch a show. A dance team in the area put on the show like they do every Monday night. 4 of the members formed a team and came in second place in the National Hip Hop tournament and are going to Las Vegas to compete in the World competitions. The show showed the three world of Cape Town, the one of the blacks, the coloureds, and the whites, and each showing the hardships of each. Ultimately the message was that there is no reason that the people can’t live together in harmony, there is no logic behind racism. The show was excellently performed and gave more insight into the lives of the people in Cape Town.