Taking place from 6 – 8 September at Constitution Hill, the 2019 South African Book Fair is set to tackle riveting and controversial discussions on issues facing the country and the continent today.
This year the carefully curated programme will feature Rebels, Rage and Revolution, a panel discussion which will see Wandile Ngcaweni and Sarah Mokwebo, the editors of a collection of essays by the students behind the Fees Must Fall movement, debate its meaning with the chancellor of Wits University, Adam Habib, and Oxford scholar Rekgotsofetse Chikane, who have both published books on the subject.
Niq Mhlongo, Dudu Busani Dube and Phehello Mofokeng will take a close look at how history keeps a whole generation in debt during Black Tax and its Discontents. Visitors to the fair can also expect riveting dialogue in Africa Reimagined in which a new generation of political scholars and activists will discuss the reimagining of African identity, the myths of the rainbow nation and the truth about democracy. Rekgotsofetse Chikane, Gaongalelwe Tiro and Hlumelo Biko will be among those participating.
Other highlights include Land of Our Ancestors in which Botlhale Tema will relate the history of her family and their strive for co-ownership of Pilanesberg National Park, their ancestral home. She will be joined by Prof. Ben Cousins, who has written extensively on land policy and how it can alleviate poverty.
Lawfare – The Fight for Justice in SA, Then and Now is an important session for those with an interest in the intersection between law and human rights as class-action human rights lawyer Charles Abrahams and international legal expert Michelle le Roux, the co-author of Lawfare: Judging Politics in South Africa, will discuss how courtrooms sit at the forefront of the fight for justice. They will be joined by retired Bishop and revered activist, Peter Storey, in a session that takes place in close proximity to the Constitutional Court.
These are just some of the many highlights of a programme that features more than 100 authors, poets, storytellers and facilitators across nearly 30 panel discussions, debates and more.
