Nothing’s Changed Tatamkhulu Afrika

Lesson Objectives To understand how the poet uses language and imagery in ‘Nothing’s Changed’ to create empathy Be aware of the cultural context See how racial divides are presented in the poem

Apartheid Apartheid was a system of racial segregation in South Africa, from 1948 to 1994 The new government classified inhabitants into racial groups: ‘black’, ‘white’, ‘coloured’, and ‘yellow’, and residential areas were segregated through forced removal They felt that interracial interaction bred conflict; however, the movement was giving more power to Whites, and stripping independence from Blacks and other racial groups.

The government passed an act, the ‘Reservation of Separate Amenities Act’. Under this they could segregate public premises, vehicles, and services based on race. Sections for different races didn’t need to be equal, and the law allowed people to be completely excluded based on their race. Pretty soon, many places became ‘white-only’, since the white people were viewed as superior to other races. The best places were reserved for whites.

District Six District Six is the name of an inner-city residential area in Cape Town, South Africa. After the second world war, the area was popular with black families, along with Muslim, Afrikaans, white, and Indian residents.

During the 1960s, the Apartheid regime decided to segregate the people living in District Six. They declared the area a slum, portraying the area as crime-ridden and dangerous, claiming the area was full of immoral activities like gambling and drinking. However, most residents believed the government wanted the land because it was so close to the city centre. On 11th February 1966, the government declared District Six a white-only area under the Group Areas Act, with removals starting in 1968. By 1982, more than 60,000 people had been relocated 25 kilometres away. The old houses were bulldozed.

Nobody wanted to develop the land, despite the government’s efforts, and it remained derelict until the early 2000s. District Six itself became probably the most powerful symbol of what apartheid did to families and communities in South Africa.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningzone/clips/south-african-baby-black-or-white/7310.html

Nothing’s Changed The poem was written by Afrika in the 1990s. He was born in Egypt to an Arab father and Turkish mother He went to South Africa as a young child but was orphaned at the age of 2. He was raised by a white Christian family in Cape Town

During the Apartheid, Afrika could have been classed as White, but he chose instead to identify as Muslim and was classed ‘Coloured’. The poem is the most autobiographical one in the two clusters, as Afrika is looking back on his own past.

Bunny Chow

Analysing your stanza Try and identify any of the following techniques, thinking about their purpose and effect: simile - repetition metaphor - consonance onomatopoeia - assonance personification - strong images Alliteration - sibilance Think about the tone presented by the poet. What is the feeling of the poem? Annotate your stanza to show where the techniques are