With gender-based violence (GBV) increasing yearly, a group of Parktown High School for Girls learners decided to take a stand. Grade 11 learner and member of the group Chiddimma Nwokedi shared that the group of learners calling themselves Inkohlakalo which translates to ‘terrible things’ in isiZulu; has taken it upon themselves to identify the root cause of what ‘now’ qualifies as a pandemic.
“In as much as we appreciate all the hashtags that flood our social media platforms for purposes of an outcry and awareness, we felt that more needed to be done. We cannot rely on social media alone, there is so much that happens in the world that people easily move on. What is also more cautioning is the fact that the concentration span on social media has dropped to mere seconds,” said Chiddimma.
She said the aim of the group is to create a safe space for young girls to find comfort amongst each other through the spread of gender-based violence awareness performances in the form of art, conversations and music. These future leaders aim to host a workshop once a month, in doing so, they keep their passions alive. Their first workshop took place on 28 July at a studio in Soweto. The group used minimum props to portray the brutality of gender-based violence in South Africa.
The second workshop took place on 1 August when the girls met at an abandoned field in Naturena to share original poetry and stories.
Their upcoming workshop is expected to happen on 5 September at the Johannesburg Botanical Garden.
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