August 2010
1 post
Snapshot in Africa
Snapshot in Africa
Her old black thumb
closed over the photo
covered their chubby pink cheeks
— they’d laughed and laughed when I snapped it –
she never looked at them
no interest in them
Too many children tugged at her skirts
needing food needing clothes needing love needing
Her finger rested on Helen’s face
Your daughter?
Ah, she said, I had nine, she said
but now
only one
I...
June 2010
1 post
May 2010
13 posts
African grandmothers demand attention
Freelton, May 22, 2010
an article for the Spectator
I’m still reeling from my two week trip to Swaziland and South Africa with the Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign of the Stephen Lewis Foundation. I was expecting to hear some heartbreaking stories and to recognise the courage these grandmothers show. But I wasn’t expecting the depth of the need, or the sheer inventiveness these women...
Grandmothers challenge MP Michael Chong to release...
Elora, Ontario, Monday May 17 2010
Hot on the heels of my visit to Africa, I was delighted to hear of a meeting between MP Michael Chong and a passionate and eloquent group of grandmothers in Elora Legion on Monday. Organised by Grandmothers of the Grand, who support the work of African grandmothers through the Stephen Lewis Foundation, the question and answer session had one single...
“I found that to march with one’s people was exhilarating and inspiring.”
– Nelson Mandela at the time of the bus boycott in 1943
“Man can adapt to the worst conditions if he feels he is not alone; if he feels...”
– Mat Mahany, who was in prison with Nelson Mandela
“When the Europeans came, they had the Bible and we had the land. Now we have...”
– Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg
Thousands of grandmothers march in Africa
International Grandmothers Gathering
Manzini, Swaziland. May 8, 2010
Thousands of Grandmothers on the March!
They marched in their thousands, grandmothers from Ethiopia, gogos from South Africa, nya nyas from Kenya, sho shos from Zambia, nanas from Namibia, grannies from 13 African countries, marching in solidarity through Manzini, Swaziland in the first ever International Grandmothers...
An African welcome ... overwhelming!
Today was one of the most important days of our visit, when we went out in groups of 5 to 8 to visit different projects in the Jo’burg and Pretoria area. I went to a small project on the outskirts of Pretoria, Tateni.
What a welcome we got! Five Canadian grandmothers, Susan and Julie from the SLF with Christina our wonderful photographer all trooped out of our van and into the doorway of...
follow the Gathering's official blog!
Go to
http://stephenlewisfoundation.wordpress.com/
to find the latest photos and news from the African Grandmothers Gathering. The photos will be professional and you’ll get the official story. I’m not taking photos at the projects — one officical photographer is enough when we are meeting the African grandmothers.
Lisbie
April 2010
18 posts
We're in Africa!
So, after two days of travelling, including a day in Frankfurt, here we are in Johannesburg! The hotel is hopping with grandmothers — about 36 in the main hotel, 6 of us in a B&B next door, and the SLF organisers in another B&B close by. The place is gorgeous! We’ve nly been here an hour or so, and lunch is calling, then a tour to the Nelson Mandela House in Soweto. ...
granofsteel asked: Why do African schoolchildren have to buy uniforms to wear to school? It stops many poor children from getting the education they need to get out of poverty.
This is the question posed by Morgan in the social justice group SOLID at Waterdown District High school
This is the question posed by Morgan in the social justice group SOLID at Waterdown District High school
Support my work with grandmothers
Just today I got another offer of gifts to take with me to Africa. (Thanks, Tracy!)Thank you ALL for your generous offers! However, it can be tricky to take gifts for lots of reasons. For instance, who do we give them to? There will be thousands at the Gathering, and we can’t leave anyone out; news gets around, no matter how discreet you are. Also, people feel better and meet their...
Grandmothers of Steel photos and news →
Click here to find out more about my group, Grandmothers of Steel in Hamilton, Ontario
Stephen Lewis Foundation →
Click here to find out about the Stephen Lewis Foundation and its work in sub-Saharan Africa
Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign →
Click here to find out about the Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign, which raises funds and awareness for African grandmothers bringing up their grandchildren orphaned by AIDS. The Campaign supports the work of the Stephen Lewis Foundation.
“When the grandmothers speak, the world will heal.”
– Hopi prophecy
Siphiwe Hlophe
Meet the woman who thought up the African Grandmothers Gathering: Siphiwe Hlophe. In a couple of weeks, I’ll be in Swaziland, meeting her. Stephen Lewis calls her astonishing:
Siphiwe Hlophe, who heads the women living with AIDS project, Swapol, [Swaziland Positive Living] is astonishing. For International Women’s Day in Swaziland, 1,800 grandmothers came out and marched,...
