Exploring the history of colonialism and apartheid in South Africa — Just Peace Pilgrimage photos

Apartheid Museum ticket
​The pilgrimage participants visited the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. The first stark demonstration of that era in history came before they even entered the building — tickets randomly classify their holder as “white” or “non-white,” and that person must use the museum entrance indicated. Photo by Jennifer Murch.
Jennifer Murch
  • Jennifer Murch

20 people from across the United States joined Chapter 2 of Mennonite Mission Network’s Racial Justice Pilgrimage. The Just Peace Pilgrimage ran from October 16-27 and had the group travel from Johannesburg to Cape Town, exploring the long history and legacy of colonialism and apartheid — a political social engineering project based on racial segregation in South Africa.

Jennifer Murch, who attended Chapter 1 of the Racial Justice Pilgrimage last year, documented the group’s experience through photos. 

The pilgrimage was organized by Iziko Lamaqabane. According to their website, Iziko Lamaqabane “serves those active at the site of struggle by facilitating spaces of retreat, exchange and collective learning grounded at the intersection of Anabaptism, Black liberation theology & critical consciousness.”

The pilgrimage started out in Johannesburg, with a contextual Bible study where the participants circled around a central display and reflected on a parable.
Participants listened to the tour guide, Caiphus Mkhashane, speak before heading back inside the Apartheid Museum.
The group toured the Old Fort Prison Complex at Constitution Hill, learning about the historical figures who were held captive there, like Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, among others.
Buyisiwe Pokie Putu (left), Director of Afro Feminist-Womanist Solidarity & Operations Manager at Iziko Lamaqabane, and Nkosivumile Gola (right), Director of Urban African Solidarity, Black Church & Black Theology Engagement and Programs Manager at Iziko Lamaqabane, served as two of the pilgrimages’ host leaders. Along with Mzwandile Nkutha (not pictured), they organized logistics, took the group to different sites of struggles, led discussions, asked questions, and modeled how the pilgrims might ask better questions.
George Ranaka (slightly right of center), a resident of Kliptown, explains the ten clauses of the Freedom Charter in Kliptown. Kliptown is a suburb of Soweto where the Freedom Charter was first officially adopted on June 26, 1955.
The group attended Brethren in Christ Church in Johannesburg. The service’s theme was Celebrating Our Elders. It began with the church’s elders (anyone 50 and older) processing into the church while the congregation sang and ululated. At different points during the service, the worship leader read quotes from the elders, a favorite scripture passage of theirs, and some of the nuggets of wisdom they’d gleaned over the years. Different music groups were called up front to sing, and there was the cutting of a celebration cake and dancing.
Mzwandile Nkutha, Director of Iziko Lamaqabane, prepares for communion during morning Bible study in Cape Town.
On their second day in Cape Town, the group held their morning Bible study outdoors in front of Schoenstatt, the convent-run retreat center that the pilgrims stayed at in Cape Town.
Reverend Rene August (right of center), co-director of The Justice Conference South Africa, met the group in Cape Town’s District Six. Reverend August was mentored by South African theologian, priest, and anti-apartheid activist Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
In 1966, the apartheid government announced that District Six — then primarily comprised of Black residents — would be razed and rebuilt as a Whites only neighborhood. More than 60,000 of its residents were removed over the next decade. The neighborhood was never rebuilt, and what remains is buried under the hills.
Caroline Powell, an independent researcher on spatial justice, joined the group’s contextual Bible study to speak about land and space issues. 
The pilgrimage participants were hosted by Fatima Jacobs (left of center) and her family for a homemade lunch. Her family is connected to Palestinian Action Network and Bo-Kaap Roots — the agency that organized the pilgrimage’s time in Cape Town. Both programs work closely with Iziko Lamaqabane.
The group visited the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation’s Old Granary in Cape Town, where they learned about the life and work of Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
On their last Friday during in the pilgrimage, the group ate dinner at the Blue Bird Garage — a large warehouse with many assorted vendors lining the perimeter of the building and communal tables in the center. According to Murch, it felt very “Anabaptist-y.”
The group spent Saturday afternoon on Chapman’s Peak, a mountain with a sheer western face overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Steve Schallert, Director of International Solidarity at Iziko Lamaqabane, had the pilgrims reflect on the trip and create a roadmap for themselves for one week, one month, and one year after they return home to their normal lives. 

Related