S t e p h e n M i c h a e l G o r d o n D e p a r t m e n t of Social A n t h r o p o l o g y U n i v e r s i t y of C a p e T o w n .

C O N T E M P O R A R Y Y O U T H C U L T U R E IN C A P E TOWN.

I. S T A T I N G THE PROE<LEM. 1

II. B A C K G R O U N D . 2

III. M E T H O D O L O G Y . t,

IV. Y O U T H A N D T I M E L E S S N E S S . 4

V. T H E W H I T E A F R I C A N S ? 6

VI. THE IMAGE OF "THE T O W N S H I P " 9

VII. S T Y L E A N D F A SHION. 12

VIII. GLOSS A R Y . 1 5

IX. B I B L I O G R A P H Y . 1 5

G r a d u a t e S e m i n a r 26 April 1985.

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s t t x m g -r i.ie: f>f c o o l _e i m

T here are e v o l v i n g p o p u l a r c u l t u r e s in C a p e Town w h i c h e n c o m p a s s a w i d e r an g e of sot: i a 1 sec t or s , Ur ban y o u t h c u 11 u r e s , f or ex amp 1 e , h ave been m a n i f e s t in a v a r i e t y of i n t e r e s t i n g f o r m s in r e c e n t ye a r s , but few of t h e m h a v e be e n t h e s u b j e c t of a c a d e m i c r e s e a r c h .

My H o n o u r s t h e s i s d o c u m e n t e d the p r a c t i c e s and p e r c e p t i o n s of t w o m e m b e r s of C a p e T o w n ' s R a s t a f a r i a n c o m m u n i t y , but that is o n l y o n e of a w h o l e r a n g e of cu l t u r a l f o r m s p r e v a l e n t a m o n g s t t h e c i t y ' s youth. R e c o g n i z i n g v a r i o u s t r e nds, l i f e s t y l e s and f a s h i o n s in C a p e T o w n , I had a n t i c i p a t e d c o m p i l i n g a c u l t u r a l e t h n o g r a p h y of t h e city, but p r e l i m i n a r y f i e l d w o r k s u g g e s t s th a t t h i s w o u l d be far t o o a m b i t i o u s a p r o j e c t for one p e r s o n to u n d e r t a k e . I h a v e c o n s e q u e n t l y c o n s i d e r e d d o c u m e n t i n g a few m o r e l o c a l i s e d a s p e c t s of t h e c i t y ' s y o u t h c ulture.

C h o o s i n g an a p p r o p r i a t e "unit of s t u d y " is d i f f i c u l t w h e n c o n f r o n t e d with a m u l t i - e t h n i c s o ciety. W i t h i n g r e a t e r C a p e Town t h e r e are c o u n t l e s s c ultural f o r m s - t h e s e f o r m s a r e o f t e n i s o l a t e d f r o m each other, yet t h e y do i n t e r a c t and i n f l u e n c e o n e a n o t h e r to d i f f e r e n t degrees. The idea of a "cult u r a l c o n t i n u u m " a d v a n c e d by L e e D r u m m o n d (1980) p r o v i d e s useful i n s i g h t s i n t o t h e p r o b l e m . D r u m m o n d c o n c l u d e s that "a c u ltural c o n t i n u u m , like a l i n g u i s t i c c o n t i n u u m , may be i d e n t i f i e d by i n s e r t i n g a r b i t r a r y b o u n d a r i es w i t h i n a t r a n s f o r m a t i o n a l series.* c r e o l e .linguistics s u g g e s t a c r e o l e m e t a p h o r of c u l t u r e that re p l a c e s irn'ar i ance w ith i n t e r n a l v a r i a t i o n f a n d c e n t r e w ith p e r i p h e r y ", (1980:370) In t h i s i n s t a n c e , t h e r i g i d l e g i s l a t i o n w h i c h d i v i d e s C a p e T o w n into racial "group a r e a s " p r e s e n t s an unusual reali t y .

A lt h o u g h rigid, racial b a r r i e r s as l e g i s l a t e d by t h e t h e G r o u p A r e a s Act. h a v e not p r o v e d i m p e r m e a b l e . W h e r e the o l d e r g e n e r a t i o n r e l a t e a c r o s s co l o u r l i n e s m o s t l y as m a s t e r / s e r v a n t , it is a m o n g s t t h e c i t y ' s y o ung p e o p l e t h e r e a r e o f t e n i n t e r e s t i n g , if brief, c u l t u r a l i n t e r a c t i o n s and e x c h a n g e s of k n o w l e d g e . P a r e n t s and t h e a u t h o r i t i e s g e n e r a l l y f r o w n up o n su c h c o n t a c t ("it can o n l y c a u s e t r o u b l e " ) , and for t h i s reason, I s u b m i t that t h e r e d o e s e x i s t s o m e t h i n g of a " s u b— or c o u n t e r - c u l t u r e " a m o n g s t C a p e T o w n ' s youth: a c u l t u r e w h i c h in s o m e way a p p e a r s to c h a l l e n g e t h e v a l u e s of t h e d o m i n a n t cul t u r e .

At this stage, I feel that t h e d e f i n i t i o n of s u b c u l t u r e is not in itself important. T h e o r e t i c a l w o r k s c i t e d h a v e d e f i n i t e l y a s s i s t e d my enquiry: work by H e b d i g e (1981) and Hall (1976, 1982), for e x a m p l e h a v e s u g g e s t e d useful a p p r o a c h e s for i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of s t y l e a m o n g s t y oung people. H e b d i g e ( S u b c u l t u r e : T h e m e a n i n g of S t y l e ) i 11u s t r a t e s how style can be u s e d as a " f orm of r e f u s a l " , a n d h o w m a t e r i a l o b j e c t s or b e h a v i o u r can a s s u m e v a s t l y d i f f e r e n t m e a n i n g s in d i f f e r e n t c o n t e x t s . Stuart Hall (The R e d i s c o v e r y of 'Ideology' — R e t u r n of the r e p r e s s e d in media s t u d i e s .in G u r e v i t c h et al) l o o k s at h o w i m p o r t a n t the conc e p t " i d e o l o g y " w a s to t h e 'critical p a r a d i g m ' w h i c h e m e r g e d in cultural s t u d i e s p o s t 1960.

z..

I will d i s c u s s t h e s e w o r k s at a later stage, but for now, t h e f o c u s s hould be on e t h n o g r a p h y . T h e r e is a d e f i n i t e n e e d t o d o c u m e n t c o n t e m p o r a r y cul t u r a l forms, p a r t i c u l a r l y s i n c e my p r e l i m i n a r y fieldwork i n d i c a t e s that th e y a r e u n i q u e to C a p e Town. In t h e section.-, which follow, I will g i v e a b r ief e x a m p l e of t h e u r b a n y o u t h c u l t u r e

w h ich I h a v e observed.

13 if-'i G i< O Ft O LJ N O -

When first p r o p o s i n g t h i s t h e sis, I d e f i n e d my t o p i c as " s t y l e s and s y m b o l i s m - e x p r e s s i o n s of a l i e n a t i o n a m o n g s t w h i t e u r b a n S o u t h A f r ican youth". T h i s t o p i c w a s c r i t i c i z e d by t h e d e p a r t m e n t m that p r e - s u p p o s e d a c o n c l u s i o n , it a s s u m e d th a t w h i t e y o u t h w e r e

"alienated" .

A l t h o u g h I was u n s u r e h o w to set a b o u t my study, I had a c l e a r i m a g e in my mind of t h e a r e a s w h i c h I f e l t I w a n t e d t o c o v e r s s o m e of the y outh c u l t u r e s p r e v a l e n t in C a p e Town. A l t h o u g h it ib h a r d to d e m a r c a t e th e m as " s u b c u l t u r e s " , I o b s e r v e d a p e r s i s t a n t ideal gical c o m p o n e n t to y o u n g p e o p l e ' s s t y l e and a p p e a r a n c e , a c o m p o n e n t w h i c h

saw as an i m p o r t a n t c l u e to u n d e r s t a n d i n g them.I p r o c e e d e d to c o l l e c t e t h n o g r a p h i c m a t e r i a l ( covered under M e t h o d o l o g y ) , and t o o k a look at s o m e of t h e w o r k s a v a i l a b l e . I will not now t r a c e t h r o u g h t h e r e f e r e n c e s w h i c h I h a v e u s e d (they f _ e a p p e n d e d as a b i b l i o g r a p h y ) , but will just g i v e s o m e id e * as to w h i c h

w o r k s ha v e been of t h e g r e a t e s t a s s i s t a n c e :

T h e r e is a s u b s t a n t i a l b o d y of B r i t i s h w o r k on s u b - and c o u n t e r - c u l t u r e s in p o s t - w a r B r i t a i n , w h i c h h a s h e l p e d m e g reatly. M a n y of tht cultural f o r m s c u r r e n t l y p r e v a l e n t in S o u t h Afric*. o.re mu a io n ^ o cultural f o r m s i m p o r t e d v i a t h e t r a n s n a t i o n a l m e d i a c o m p a n i e s (recording indus t r y , f a shion, m a g a z i n e s ) , so B r i t i s h a n d A m e r i c a n e t h n o g r a p h i c w o r k s h a v e be e n i m p o r t a n t . (In p a r t i c u l a r , t h e wor e m a n a t i n g fr o m the B i r m i n g h a m School of C o n t e m p o r a r y ICultural Studies). O b v i o u s l y , t h e t h e o r e t i c a l m o d e l s d e v e l o p e d in t h e c o n t e n t

of t h o s e w o r k s a l s o a s s i s t my e nquiry.

H a v i n g c h e c k e d t h e r e f e r e n c e s and i n d e x e s in J a g g e r l i b r a r y , it a p p e a r s that t h e r e is an a b s e n c e of a n y e t h n o g r a p h i c m a t e r i a l on c o n t e m o o r a r y y o u t h c u l t u r e in S o u t h Africa. M o s t of t h e s t u d i e s w h i c h I e n c o u n t e r e d f o c u s s e d on " d e v i a n c y " , f r o m a p h e n o m o l o g i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e , and w e r e o r i e n t e d t o w a r d s i n d i v i d u a l c a s e s t udies.

W i t h o u t a c l ear p a r a d i g m or f r a m e w o r k of r e s e a r c h , I set a b o u t d o c u m e n t i n g e l e m e n t s of t h e " c o u n t e r c u l t u r e " p r e v a l e n t a m o n g s t w h i t e y o uth in C a p e Town. I h a v e c o l l e c t e d a fair b o d y of e t h n o g r a p h i c material on t h i s topic, w h i c h I s u b m i t is s u f f i c i e n t l y i n t e r e s t i n g to

w a r r a n t f u l l e r resea r c h .

O b v i o u s l y , I h a v e yet to d e c i d e e x a c t l y w h a t f o r m my f i n i s h e d w o r k will assume. S u g g e s t i o n s so far h a v e i n c l u d e d "an e t h n o g r a p h y of c o n t e m p o r a r y c u l t u r e in C a p e T own" (which I feel to be s o m e w h a t

a m b i t i o u s ) , to a t h e s i s on " C o n t e m p o r a r y Y o u t h C u l t u r e in C a p e Town".1 must s t r e s s th a t e v e n t h e l a t t e r t o p i c (which I h a v e f o r m a l l y r egis t e r e d ) is a v e r y e x t e n s i v e one. I h a v e a l r e a d y d o n e a long p aper on R a s t a f a r i a n i s m , and w o u l d m o t i v a t e that I t r y to p r o d u c e a " selected e t h n o g r a p h y 11 , d eal in g w i t h s o m e of t h e c u l t u r a l tor m s u. s e d by y o u n g people. An i n t r o d u c t o r y s e c t i o n c o u l d b e u s e d to l o c a t e t h e s e d i f f e r e n t for in s w .i t h i n a b r o a d e r c u l t u r a 1 c o n t i n u um.

For th i s p a r t i c u l a r sem i n a r , I am g o i n g t o f o c u s on " A f r i c a n i s m s " , or the " P r e v a l e n c e of an A f r i c a n i d e n t i t y " a m o n g s t w h i t e y o u t h in C a p e Town. W h i l e t h i s is by n o m e a n s a final " c h a p t e r " or i s o l a t e d s e c t i o n of my work, it is an i m p o r t a n t th e m e , and I am i n d e e d keen to hear what o ther m e m b e r s of t h e D e p a r t m e n t feel a b o u t it.

M El T M O E> O L _ O & Y ..

In the s e c t i o n above, I h a v e g i v e n s o m e i d e a as to p o s s i b l e b o u n d a r i e s for the study, but I must c o n c e d e th a t I am not yet c e r t a i n w h e r e t hese will fall. My u n i t of s t u d y is not yet d e f i n e d , but as wo r k proceeds, I find t h a t t h e r e a r e c l e a r t h e m e s e m e r g i n g . T h e s e t h e m e s will form the b a s i s for c h a p t e r s of m y thesis.

I am satis f i e d that the gene r a l a r e a w h i c h I am w o r k i n g in is o n e which w a r r a n t s resea r c h . In fact, t h e a r e a of c o n t e m p o r a r y u r b a n c u l t u r e is q u i t e d a u n t i n g w h e n y o u r e a l i z e h o w u n d e r - r e s e a r c h e d it is. The p r o b l e m for me is h o w to f o c u s o n e o n e p a r t i c u l a r area.S u g g e s t i o n s welcome!

In the work w h i c h I h a v e c o m p l e t e d , I h a v e c o m b i n e d p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n with m o r e formal i n t e r v i e w s and d i s c u s s i o n s . I w o r k f r o m a f l e x i b l e s c h e d u l e of t o p i c s and q u e s t i o n s w h i c h I r e f e r to o c c a s i o n a l l y d u r i n g the c o u r s e of such d i s c u s s i o n , c h e c k i n g w h e t h e r t here are any a r e a s w h i c h m i g h t be s u c c e s s f u l l y p e r s u e d in that p a r t i c u l a r instance. I n t e r v i e w s a r e t r a n s c r i b e d , and c r o s s - r e f e r e n c e d a c c o r d i n g to t o p i c s and a r e a s of interest. It s e e m s p r o b a b l e that s o m e of t h e s e a r e a s will f o r m t h e b a s i s for c h a p t e r s . M a n y of the q u o t a t i o n s c i t e d b e l o w o r i g i n a t e f r o m such i n t e r v i e w s and d i s c u s s i o n s .

When I c o m p l e t e an i n t e r v i e w , t h e r o u g h t r a n s c r i t s are s h o w n to p e o p l e c o n c e r n e d so that t h e y m a y add a n y c o m m e n t s , or e x t r a i n f o r m a t i o n w hich they feel to be n e c e s s a r y . So far I h a v e f o u n d that the s u b j e c t s of the i n t e r v i e w s h a v e a p p r o v e d of t h e f i n i s h e d t r a n s c r i p t s , and of any a n n o t a t e d c o m m e n t a r y w h i c h I h a v e p r o v i d e d .

It will be n e c e s s a r y for me to c o n s i d e r t h e m e t h o d o l o g i c a l e f f e c t s of my i n terviews. For exa m p l e , most s u b j e c t s , w h e n a p p r o a c h e d , h a v e been quick to d e n y t h eir c o m p e t e n c y to t a l k a b o u t " C o n t e m p o r a r y y o u t h culture". " M e ? " . . . t h e h o r r i f i e d r e p l y b o u n c e s ba c k w i t h o u t fail. However, as the i n t e r v i e w s p r o c e e d , p e o p l e ga i n c o n f i d e n c e and a l m o s t c o m e to revel in t h e i r n e w f o u n d r o l e as " e x p erts". A fter all, if what they say is b e i n g us e d for an a c a d e m i c study, t h e r e must ‘be s o m e t h i n g in it!

With r e g a r d s the i n t e r v i e w s , I will a l s o n e e d to d i s c u s s p r e c i s e l y who I h a v e felt to be w o r t h y subjects. I c e r t a i n l y h a v e not i m p l e m e n t e d anything a l ong l i n e s of a " r a n d o m sam p l e " . I feel that 1 h a v e p e r s u e d a c e r t a i n "sector" of youth, a g r o u p i n g w h i c h s o m e of t h e m h a v e d e s c ribed as a “sub - c u l t u r e " . 1 h e e d g e s a r e v e r y b l u r r e d , but then, that is one of the m a j o r c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of s u b - c u l t u r e s - t h e y are? not as ea s y to l o c a t e as, for e x a m p l e , s t r e e t gangs.

As i n d i c a t e d above, I feel th a t p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n l e n d s itself well to the s t u d y of y o u t h c u l t u r e s . N e w s p a p e r and o r g a n i z a t i o n a l wo r k which I h a v e d o n e with, for e x a m p l e , m u s i c i a n s , h a s a f f o r d e d me e n t r e e into a v a r i e t y of i n t e r e s t i n g s e t t i n g s . A s a y o u n g p e r s o n l i v i n g in Cape Town, I h a v e b e e n a b l e to m o v e a r o u n d and e x p l o r e the y o u t h c u l ture “on the g r o u n d " , so to sppeak. W h i l e I w o u l d be keen to a n a l y s e my e t h n o g r a p h i c m a t e r i a l f r o m an i d e o l o g i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e , my initial p r i o r i t y is just to r e c ord, "get it down" as is. I want to a c c u m u l a t e a t h o r o u g h b o d y of d e s c r i p t i v e m a t e r i a l - that is, an et h n og r ap h y .

N umerous t h e o r e t i c a l m o d e l s c o m e to m i n d for t h e p u r p o s e of a n a l y s i s , and I will not n o w a t t e m p t to e v a l u a t e t h e i r r e l a t i v e u s e f u l n e s s e s . Clearly, C l i f f o r d G e e r t z ' s u s e of "thick d e s c r i p t i o n " will a s s u m e greater i m p o r t a n c e w h e n I try to e x p l i c a t e t h e t e x t s c o l l e c t e d , as will the semi otic a p p r o a c h of R o l a n d B arthes. T h e o r e t i c a l a p p r o a c h e s of Gramsci (in Simon, 1982) and S t u a r t Hall (1976; 1982) s h o u l d a l s o be useful in t h i s regard.

The notion of h e g e m o n y a d v a n c e d by G r a m s c i is p a r t i c u l a r l y p e r t i n e n t . Hall (1982:85) o b s e r v e s that for G r a m s c i , t h e e s s e n c e of h e g e m o n y is that it is " a c c o m p l i s h e d not w i t h o u t the due m e a s u r e of legal and legitimate c o m pul s i o n , but p r i n c i p a l l y by mean s o f w i n n i n g the act i i' e consent of those c l a s s e s and g r o u p s who w e r e s u b o r d i n a t e d w i t h i n it." It is i n t e r e s t i n g to c o n s i d e r in w h a t w a y s t h e l i f e s t y l e s and s t y l e s of some y outh c h a l l e n g e t h e h e g e m o n y of d o m i n a n t g r o u p s or c lasses.

V O U T I ! f t M H > ■' T I M E l L _ _ E E S £ 3 M E S S " -

There are d e f i n i t e t r e n d s and p a t t e r n s w h i c h e m e r g e r e p e a t e d l y in the l i f estyles of t h o s e studied- What f o l l o w s is a v e r y brief d e s c r i p t i o n of a day in the l i f e of one of t h e s u b j e c t s of m y study. It w o u l d be naive to i m a g i n e that the d e s c r i p t i o n w h i c h f o l l o w s h o l d s t r u e for all youth, but, on t h e b a s i s of my r e s e a c h , I w o u l d s u g g e s t that t h e r e are many a s p e c t s of it w h i c h e x t e n d t o t h e l i f e s t y l e s of o t h e r y o u n g people in C a p e Town.

One morning, I had a r r a n g e d to i n t e r v i e w Rick, a 19 ye a r old b o y living in a c ommunal house. D e s p i t e h a v i n g m a d e an a p p o i n t m e n t a week in advance, and h a v i n g c o n f i r m e d it t h e d a y b e f o r e , I f o u n d Rick, asleep when I a r r i v e d at the h o u s e at 1 1 am o n e w e e k d a y m orning. I was lucky. Ma n y o t her p e o p l e had f a i l e d to r e m e m b e r at a l 1 t h a t t h e y had made an a r r a n g e m e n t wi t h me. In t h i s i n s t a n c e , t h e s u b j e c t a p o l o g i z e d

p r o f u s e l y and p r o c e e d e d t o s h o w e r and d r e s s b e f o r e s e r v i n g tea and c o at m enc i n q w i 111 t. h e in t e rvi e w .

At first r e ading, t h i s i n f o r m a t i o n m i g h t s e e m trivial to r e a d e r s of this paper, but t h e lack of a s t r u c t u r e d d a y and t h e a b s e n c e of any b i n ding comini t t m e n ts a r e i m p o r t a n t f a c t o r s in f a c i l i t a t i n g the " ti inel e s n e s s " w h i c h is m a n i f e s t a m o n g s t m a n y of the y o u t h b e i n g studi e d .

R e t u r n i n g to t h i s case, I p r o c e e d e d w i t h t h e i n t e r v i e w , t r y i n g to e x p l o r e what Rick s a w as b e i n g t h e ma i n f o c u s of his life at that par t i c u 1 ar t ime s

Q : W H A T ARE Y O U D O I N G AT T H E M O M E N T ?R ; At the m o m e n t I just p l a y m u s i c . .. well y o u know, p e o p l e c o u l d say it's just f u c k i n g around. I'm s e l l i n g at t h e mark e t , just s u r viving, b a r e l y s u r v i v i n g . . . g e t t i n g m o n e y for food, and o t h e r w i s e d a n c i n g and r a v i n g at t h e m o m e n t . . .

I w o uld say that I'd li k e to plan a c l e a r d i r e c t i o n , but I w o u l d n ' t say at the m o m e n t it ' s v e r y cle a r . . . for a lot of p e o p l e

it isn't v e r y clear.

He said t h i s a l m o s t a p o l o g e t i c a l l y _ as t h o u g h it w a s bad to do n o t h i n g when y o u c o u l d be d o i n g s o m e t h i n g . L i v i n g in a h o u s e wi t h other w a g e—ea r n i n g i n d i v i d u a l s c l e a r l y o f f e r e d R i c k a m e a s u r e of •financial secur i t y , yet he s t r e s s e d that he felt he was “ba r e l y surviving". As far as I c o u l d a s c e r t a i n f r o m d i s c u s s i o n wi t h Ri c k (and later with f r i e n d s of his), t h e " p l a y i n g m u s i c " c o m p o n e n t of his life amounted to l i t t l e m o r e t h a n o c c a s i o n a l s i t - i n s in w h i c h a g r o u p of friends w o u l d beat A f r i c a n ha n d drums. " S e l l i n g at t h e m a r k e t " e ntailed s e l l i n g s e c o n d - h a n d c l o t h e s and b e a d w o r k at t h e f l e a—mar k e t on G r e e n m a r k e t S q u a r e on an i r r e g u l a r basis.

D uring the hour or so that we sat c h a t t i n g , w e w e r e i n t e r r u p t e d by v i s i t o r s w h o had c o m e to see Rick. N o n e of t h e m had any s p e c i f i c m i s sion that w a s a p p a r e n t to me, but d r i f t e d i n t o t h e house, s t a y e d for awhile, m a y b e r e q u e s t i n g that a r e c o r d be put on w h i l e t h e y sat and chatted, d r a n k tea, or s m o k e d s o m e dagga. D i s c u s s i o n t o p i c s r a n g e d fr o m music and c u r r e n t a f f a i r s t h r o u g h to p e r s o n a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s and / or c o n f r o n t a t i o n s w i t h t h e " s t r a i g h t " world.

The i m p r e s s i o n I g a i n e d w a s that our i n t e r v i e w c a m e n o w h e r e ne a r to being an i n t r u s i o n on R i c k ' s time. Had I not be e n v i s i t i n g , it is p r o b a b l e that he w o u l d h a v e w o k e n up an ho u r or so later, and p r o c e e d e d with the o t h e r a c t i v i t i e s w h i c h m a k e up his day. O t h e r s s p o k e n to h a v e c o n s i d e r a b l y m o r e c o m m i t t m e n t s in t h eir d a i l y s c h e d u l e , but t h e s e are i n v a r i a b l y a c t i v i t i e s w h i c h can be p o s t p o n e d . E x a m p l e s w ould i n c l u d e t h e b u y i n g of f a b r i c for c l o t h e s , or d o i n g s h o p p i n g at the s u p e r m a r k e t . O b v i o u s l y , p e o p l e w h o a r e e m p l o y e d h a v e s t r i c t e r s c h edules, but ev e n in t h o s e cases, t h e r e w a s a s t r o n g f e e l i n g of " t i m e l e s s n e s s " w h e n d i s c u s s i o n m o v e d in t o c o n t e m p l a t i n g the l o n g e r—te r m r e ality. For e x a m p l e , w h e n I a s k e d 2 3—y e a r—old L a r r y h o w long fie w o u l d b e liv i n g in C a p e Town, t h e a n s w e r was: "I d o n ' t know.

J

That's the w h o l e t h i n g a b o u t S o u t h A f r i c a n c u l t u r e , a b o u t b e i n g a white. T h e r e a r e so m a n y d i f f e r e n t i n f l u e n c e s on you."

In my d i s c u s s i o n s wi t h Ri c k and o t h e r s , it w a s e v i d e n t that t h e y saw their lives and l i f e s t y l e as s o m e t h i n g " a l t e r n a t i v e " , or " d i f f e r e n t " . Thus t h e r e w o u l d o f t e n be r e f e r e n c e s to "our l i t t l e s u b c u l t u r e " , or "the w h o l e c o u n t e r c u l t u r e " . N o b o d y 1 h a v e tailed to so far h a s o f f ered a m o r e s p e c i f i c d e f i n i t i o n of t heir g r o u p i n g .

T H I Z Wl~l X 1 E: f t F - Ft I C A N S

"It's b e c o m i n g m o r e and m o r e i m p o r t a n t , yo u r c u l t u r e , what y o u ' v e c o m e f r o m and w h e r e y o u ' r e moving. M a y b e it ' s just that we d o n't r e a l l y h a v e a c u l t u r e , w e ' r e l o o k i n g for s o m e t h i n g to p l u g in t o a*s w e l l . . . . " (Sarah, aged 20).

" P e o p l e are l o o k i n g for s o m e t h i n g b e c a u s e t h e y d o n ' t h a v e an i d e n t i t y or c u l t u r e h e r e . ( J o h n , a g e d 19)

Lots of w h i t e y o u t h "rebel", p a r t l y b e c a u s e of g e n e r a t i o n a l , p a r t l y because of p o l i t i c a l reasons. T h e y turn t h e i r b a c k s on t h e i r p a r e n t culture, yet th e y fail to latch o n t o a n y t h i n g new.... t h e y r e m a i n scared of p o l i t i c s , a l i e n a t e d f r o m t h e c u l t u r e of b l a c k p e o p l e , and distanced from the c u l t u r e of c o l o u r e d people.

It is hard to say for h o w long y o u n g p e o p l e m a n a g e to r e m a i n in t h i s position, but it w o u l d a p p e a r that t h e b o r d e r of t h e s u b c u l t u r e is where the "st r a i g h t " w o r l d s t a r t s - jobs, p r o f e s s i o n s , c o m p l i a n c e . For youth from m i d d l e and u p per - c l a s s b a c k g r o u n d s , f a m i l y s u p p o r t is often a v a i l a b l e , w h i l e o t h e r s s e c u r e e m p l o y m e n t (often self employment) in a r t s - r e l a t e d .a c t i v i t i e s .

Being fr o m r e l a t i v e l y w e a l t h y b a c k g r o u n d s , lo t s of t h e m h a v e t h e b ackup of f a m i l y s u p p o r t (even if a w a y f r o m h o m e ) , w h i c h r e m o v e s the n e c e s s i t y for t h e m to c h a l l e n g e t h e system. E v e n if t h e y d i s l i k e wh a t they see of the b r o a d e r social a s y s tem, t h e y o n l y feel it at a p s y c h o l o g i c a l / i d e o l o g i c a l level - (except for t h e i s s u e of cons c r i p t i o n . ) T h e y d o n ' t H A V E to c h a l l e n g e or s t r u ggle.

Thus t h e y are s u s p e n d e d in t h e m i d d l e of n o w h e r e , w h i c h c o u l d be termed as "cultural a l i e n a t i o n " , for the i n d i v i d u a l s c o n c e r n e d feel d i s t a n c e d and a l i e n a t e d f r o m t h e i r h o m e / p a r e n t c u l t u r e , on t h e o n e hand, and e q u a l l y a l i e n a t e d f r o m the "Black" c u l t u r e wi t h w h i c h t h e y want to identify;:

"I t h ink that I am A f r i c a n , I a m f i r m l y r o o t e d here, but I am w a r y of t r y i n g to L O O K A f r i c a n , t h e b a n g l e s and so on,

t h e r e ' s c o l our, t h e r e ' s a bit. of i d e n t i f y i n g w i t h A f r i c a , but we d o n ' t h a v e that R E A L c u l t u r e , we d o n ' t h a v e that thing to fall ba c k o n " . ( M a u r e e n , 25).

Th i s a l i e n a t i o n is m o r e o f t e n " m a n a g e d " than r e s o l v e d . P r e s s u r e is w arded off wi t h t h e a s s i s t a n c e of j o r 1 (fun), dr u g s , music, and, most important, the peer s u p p o r t and s o l i d a r i t y f r o m o t h e r s w i t h i n the

s u b - c u l t u r e »

W h e r e d o e s " Ihe s u b c u 11ur e" s t a r t ? By def i n i t i o n , s u b c u 1 1 u.r e i s har d to define. S u b c u l t u r e is o f t e n c o n f u s e d w i t h d e l i n g u e n c y , g a n g s t e r i s m , bu.t it is NOT t h e s a m e p h e n o n e n o n . S u b c u l t u r e l a c k s c l e a r r e g i o n a l or c l a s s basis, and d o e s not h a v e c l e a r " m e m b e r s h i p " c o d e s or c o n s c i o u s recruitment. S i n c e it m o r e d i s p a r a t e , s u b c u l t u r e h a s be e n less s u b j e c t e d to a c a d e m i c resea r c h . W h a t f o l l o w s a r e s o m e p o i n t e r s to the b o u n d s of ONE w h i t e s u b c u l t u r e in S o u t h A f r i c a n cities.

It's hard to find "key c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s " of " s u b c u l t u r e " - t h e r e are MANY c o n s t i t u e n t e l e m e n t s , m a n y m a n i f e s t a t i o n s , a c o n t i n u u m w h i c h s p r e a d s a c c r o s s c i t i e s , c l a s s e s , ages. A c e n t r a l t h r e a d of the c o u n t e r c u l t u r e w h i c h I h a v e o b s e r v e d is its p r e o c c u p a t i o n with A f r i c a n i s m s , a t h e m e to w h i c h I will n o w turn.

Most young p e o p l e in t h e u r b a n c e n r e s li s t e n to, and f o l l o w t h e t r e n d s of rock music. For t h e most part, t h e m u s i c a v a i l a b l e is that w h i c h is marketed by the g i a n t B r i t i s h and A m e r i c a n c o r p o r a t i o n s . The m u s i c is often quite bland, but in t h e pa s t deca d e , S o u t h A f r i c a n y o u t h h a v e been e x p o s e d to t h e r e l a t i v e l y r e b e l l i o u s l y r i c s of P u n k m u s i c (latterly New Wave) and, n o t a b l y , Reggae. W h a t e v e r b r a n d t h e y c h o s e to follow, t h ere c a m e a t i m e when y o u n g S o u t h A f r i c a n s s t a r t e d e x p l o r i n g the ideas and m e a n i n g of at least s o m e of t h e music. M a n y try to r e d e f i n e things, to a p p l y l y r i c s to local c i r c u m s t a n c e s . If t h e y are to rebel, to reject, t h e i r h o m e b a c k g r o u n d , then t h e r e is t h e ne e d to set s o m e t h i n g e l s e up as an a l t e r n a t i v e . For many, I s u b mit, that a l t e r n a t i v e is A f r i c a , and A f r i c a n culture.

What we see in C a p e To w n a r e lo t s of w h i t e kids, t h e y a s s e m b l e b i t s and p i e c e s of " a f r i c a n i d e n y i t y " , beads, k i k ois, etc, w h i c h all a s s e m b l e into an i m a g e r y .It d o e s n ' t m a t t e r that a p i e c e of c l o t h tied a round your a n k l e is a bit u n a t t r a c t i v e , t h e p o i n t is that it w o uld p r o b a b l y be s c o f f e d at by p a r e n t s , t e a c h e r s or e m p l o y e r s , that it a l l u d e s to a h i d d e n i d e n t i t y with t h o s e w h o s o c i e t y w o u l d n o r m a l l y scoff at: t h e o p p r e s s e d , t h e d i s p o s s e s e d , in S o u t h A f r ica, that m e a n s

Blacks:

"Yunno, w e a r e li v i n g in A f r i c a , but we a r e li v i n g in a E u r o p e a n cul t u r e , (laughs) it's r i d i c u l o u s ! P e o p l e want to learn h o w to live in A f r i c a , arid t h o s e p e o p l e h a v e been l i v i n g h e r e t h e l o n g e s t , so t h a t ' s w h e r e to get it f r o m . . . "(Mart i n , aged 25).

T h e r e is an a l m o s t u n q u e s t i o n i n g w i l l i n g n e s s to a c c e p t a n y t h i n g A f r i c a n as good and right. The c o n t e m p o r a r y s u b c u l t u r e o f t e n p r e o c c u p i e s itself wi t h s e e k i n g out an " A f r i c a n " form, yet it r e m a i n s d i s t a n c e d f r o m t h e c u l t u r e of B l a c k S o u t h A f r i c a n s . T h e m y s t i f i c a t i o n

of "African c u l t u r e " is an important; e l e m e n t of the w h i t e sub c u lture:

"(white) P e o p l e are lost, t h e y a r e lost f r o m t h e i r own c u l t u r e and t h e b l ack c u lture. T h e y a r e lo o k i n g , but it is d i f f i c u l t . T h e y are d u b i o u s about, g o i n g in t o t h e t o w n s h i p s , they a r e f r i g h t e n e d th a t t h e y will get i n t o t r o u b l e . . . . "

H e b d i g e (1981:64) w r i t i n g a b o u t the w h i t e B r i t i s h i n t e r e s t in R e g g a e o b s e r • v e s t h a 1 s

" R e g g a e ' s b l a c k n e s s w a s p r o s c r i p t i v e . It w a s an a l i e n ess e n c e , a f o r e i g n b o d y w h i c h i m p l i c i t l y t h r e a t e n e d m a i n s t r e a m B r i t i s h c u l t u r e f r o m w i t h i n . . . For t h e p u n k s to find a p o s i t i v e m e a n i n g in s u c h b l a t a n t d i s a v o w a l of B r i t i s h n e s s a m o u n t e d to a s y m b o l i c act of t r e a s o n w h i c h c o m p l e m e n t e d , in d e e d c o m p l e t e d t h e s a c r e l i q i o u s p r o g r a m m eu n d e r t a k e n in pu n k ro c k i t s e l f ..... Th e p u n k s c a p i t u l a t e d toa l i e n a t i o n lo s i n g t h e m s e l v e s in t h e u n f a m i l i a r c o n t o u r s of an a lien f o r m . . . . "

H e b d i g e ' s c o m m e n t s on w h i t e B r i t i s h P u n k s can be s i m i l a r l y a p p l i e d to the South A f r i c a n s i t u a t i o n . In our r a c i a l 1y - s e g r e g a t e d s o c i e t y , w h i t e participation in c o u n t e r - c u l t u r e (and e s p e c i a l l y B L A C K c u l t ure!) invites the w r a t h of p o l i c e and e s t a b l i s h m e n t far m o r e so t h a n in the UK. A c q u a i n t a n c e wi t h b l a c k p e o p l e e a s i l y t h r o w s y o u n g w h i t e s o n t o the wrong s i d e of t h e law to g e t h e r w i t h t h e i r "black b r o t h e r s and sisters". T h e r e are real i m p l i c a t i o n s in legal terms, but at the styli s t i c level, t h e r e a r e ev e n m o r e i m p o r t a n t s e m i o t i c c l u e s a b o u t how so m e y oung white? S o u t h A f r i c a n s p e r c e i v e t h e m s e l v e s f i t t i n g in t o their society.

J

T H E X 8 - 1 f t G EZ O I »'" I 8 Eii * * '" F Cl W N S H X P ’ * _

"The Township'' h a s an uriparal l o l e d p l a c e in t h e m v t h o l o g y o-t the “Afr i c a aware" y o u t h . F o r b i d d e n w o r d s with t e a c h e r s or p a r e n t s , the n a m e s " L a n g a " , " G u g u l e t u " or " C r o s s r o a d s " (black t o w n s h i p s and s q u a t t e r camp) are a t t r i b u t e d g r e a t i m p o r t a n c e in d i s c u s s i o n with friends. M e n t i o n of a v i s i t t h e r e will b e m a d e in a n y t h i n g f r o m mi idly boastful to s l i g h t l y e m b a r r a s s e d tones. It is for very f e w that the toniii-hip is s o m e t h i n g f a m i l i a r , t o e x p e r i e n c e or talk of at c o m p l e t e ease. T h e r e is s o m e t h i n g e x c i t i n g a b o u t t h e t o w n s h i p - m a y b e its "forbiddenness'" and its s t r a n g e n e s s , w h i c h m a k e it so a p p e a l i n g . For it is on l y in t h e t o w n s h i p th a t o r d i n a r y , m u n d a n e e v e n t s b e c o m e exc i t i n g e x p e r i e n c e s , to be r e l a t e d as e x a g g e r a t e d t a l e s to f r i e n d s back in the city.

For ma n y of the? w h i t e y o u t h i n t e r v i e w e d , p a r t i e s in, v i s i t s to, or e x c u r s i o n s t h r o u g h t h e t o w n s h i p s c o n s t i t u t e d h i g h l y s i g n i f i c a n t events. T h o s e w h o d i d n ' t f r e q u e n t t h e t o w n s h i p s t o o k g r e a t p a i n s to ex p lain why t h e y didn't, or w h e n t h e y t h o u g h t t h e y w o u l d qo there, or longed for a " j u s t i f i c a t i o n " to b e i n v o l v e d in t h e t o w n s h i p in s o m e w a y :

( M a u r e e n ) ; "I'd feel ve r y c r i t i c a l of m y s e l f if I w a n t e d t o just go out to the t o w n s h i p s to go and jorl there, it ' s a c a s e of (white) p e o p l e just g o i n g out to sl o t i n t o o t h e r p e o p l e ' s culture. I mean, I'd love to go there, but I w o n ' t u n l e s s t h e r e ' s a rea s o n for me to go there, to s e e s o m e b o d y or s o m e t h i n g . I d o n ’t think we just h a v e the r i g h t to go t h e r e . . . I t h i n k w h i t e p e o p l e in t h i s c o u n t r y a r e v e r y s u r e of t h e m s e l v e s , w e ' v e been b r o u g h t up that way. So a lot of w h i t e y s go out to the t o w n s h i p s to jorl w i t h o u t b e i n g a w a r e of all of t h e s u b t e l t i e s that are going on. It's as if t h e y t h i n k "I'm white, I jorl, I s m o k e dagga, so I can a l s o just g o out t h e r e " , I am v e r y s e n s i t i v e about that w h o l e t h i n g . "

Even for t h o s e w h o are m o r e c o n f i d e n t a b o u t it, the t o w n s h i p r e t a i n s its special s i g n i f i c a n c e . E v e r y p e r s o n I s p o k e to had s o m e t h i n g to say about the township: as Jo h n (23) e x p l a i n s :

"When t h e y (white youth) s t a r t g e t t i n g p i c k - u p f r o m B l a c k culture, f r o m t o w n s h i p c u l t u r e , (then) t h e y can learn. But we don't get e n o u g h c o n t a c t with b l a c k p e o p l e . . .

Q : B U T A R E N ' T T H E Y C O M P L E T E L Y D I S T A N C E D F R O M T O W N S H I P C U L T U R E ?J: i h e y a r e lost, t h e y a r e lost f r o m t h e i r own c u l t u r e and fr o m the b l ack cul t u r e . T h e y are loo k i n g , but it is d i f f i c u l t . T h e y are d u b i o u s a b o u t g o i n g in t o t h e t o w n s h i p s , t h e y are f r i g h t e n e d that t h e y will get into t r o u b l e .....

Q: I F IT W A S N ' T ILLEGAL, DO Y O U T H I N K T H A T A L O T M O R E W H I T E Y O U T H W O U L D V I S I T T H E T O W N S H I P S . . ?

J :Y e s , for sure, and a lot of that c o n t a c t n o w o n l y h a p p e n s t h r o u g h t h e g a n j a ( d a g g a ) .... T h e p a r e n t a l t h i n g is a big worry, p e o p l e are s c a r e d of g e t t i n g in t o t r o u b l e b e c u a s e t h ea r p a r e n t s

will w o r r y wh e n t h e y go there.

Q :WHY DO Y O U T H I N K T H A T T H E S E W H I T E Y O U T H A R E SO K E E N TO F I N D OUT A B O U T B L A C K P E O P L E ?J s T h e y h a v e be e n kept a p a r t so m u c h - t h e y a r e kept f o r c e f u l l y apart, so that is why it is so d i f f i c u l t for them. T h e y a r e not sure w h e r e t h e y s t a n d (with b l a c k s ) . . . t h e y a r e not su r e w h e t h e r the t o w n s h i p s a r e safe, a l t h o u g h t h e y ' d li k e to go and find out... A lot of y o u n g w h i tes, even liberal or l e f t - w i n g w h i tes, they h a v e s o m e t h e o r y or p o l i t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g , but t h e y d o n ' t know w h a t ' s h a p p e n i n g in t h e t o w n s h i p s . . .

Q : S O W O U L D YOU F E E L T H A T W H I T E K I D S H A V E A V E R Y F A N T A S I Z E D IDEA OF B L A C K C U L T U R E ?JsIt is ha r d to g e n e r a l i z e . . .in my c i r c l e of f r i e n d s , t h e y a r e s t a r t i n g to get a p i c t u r e now., but for t h e r e s t of the? youth, they just h a v e i d e a s in t h e i r heads, but t h e y are o f t e n inaccurate. 11

Li k e the writer, L a r r y o b s e r v e s t h a t t h e n o t i o n of the t o w n s h i p is a very r o m a n t i c i s e d o n e for m a n y of h i s peers;

Well, it (the t o w n s h i p ) h a s got to b e s o r t of cool, yunno, coz they a r e n ' t white. It's a n o t h e r pa r t of s o c i e t y t h e y d o n ' t kn o w about. Most of t h e w h i t e y s d o n ' t k n o w f u c k - a l l a b o u t wh a t g o e s on in the t o w n s h i p s , c o l o u r e d or black. I skeern it's l i k e a v e r y rom a n t i c j o r l ...

Q : T H E I R OWN IDEA OF W H A T T H E T O W N S H I P I S ____L:Ja, s u r e . . . h o w m a n y of t h o s e p e o p l e h a v e a c t u a l l y jo r l e d or s tayed in a t o w n s h i p for a f e w d a y s . . (and c o m e out). The b l a c k s won't h a n d l e t h e m . .."

Given the p r o b l e m s of i l l e g a l i t y and p h y s i c a l d i s t a n c e , t h e t o w n s h i p might be s e l d o m visited. But its m y t h o l o g y is f u e l e d by the p r o l i f e r a t i o n of A f r i c a n “to w n s h i p " s t y l e s , and, of c o u r s e , the imagery c o n j u r e d up wi t h the a s s i s t a n c e of “t o w n s h i p m u s ic". As J a n e t a n d P en n y e ;; plain:

“In Joburg, a b o u t two t h r e e y e a r s ago, a c l u b c a l l e d D V 8 open e d , and D i agonal Str e e t s t a r t e d o p e n i n g up for t h e w h i t e y s , and th e y s t a r t e d b u y i n g up all the b r i g h t b e a d s and things. Now, at t h e s a m e time, local m u s i c w a s b e c o m i n g b e t t e r known. A year ago, I don ' t t h ink p e o p 1e kn e w w h a t K w e l a (jazz —deri ved t o w nshi p rnusic) was, but now p e o p l e g e n e r a l l y k n o w w h a t t h e t e r m m e a n s . "

The a b o v e q u o t a t i o n s s h o w h o w s i g n i f i c a n t t h e t o w n s h i p is. It s e e m s that it is in t h i s c o n t e x t a l o n e th a t white? y o u t h ex per i e n c e t h e maxi mum number of t h r e a t s (both real and i magi n e d ) b e c a u s e of their w hite n e s s It is h e r e that t h e y are the s t r a n g e r s , and feel the s trangers, but it is al s o he r e that they most l o n g not to feel s t r a n g e . A w a y f r o m t h eir h o m e c u l t u r e , t h e y s t a n d alone, h o p i n g to make it,, to be a b l e to feel at h o m e in a d i f f e r e n t c ulture.

//.

An e x a m p l e of the " s t r a n g e n e s s " and " e x c i t e m e n t " w h i c h a t o n w s h i p visit can g e n e r a t e is i l l u s t r a t e d on t h e o c c a s s i o n of the -funeral of a t o w n s h i p R a s t a (called G a r v e y ) , w h o w a s k i l l e d w h e n h e i n t e r v e n e d in a d r u n k e n brawl o u t s i d e s o m e m i g r a n t l a b o u r e r s h o s t e l s in G u g u l e t u . G a r v e y was well known to n u m e r o u s w h i t e p e o p l e in C a p e Town, and his •funeral at his h o m e in L a n g a p r o v e d t o be a s y m b o l i c a f f a i r for t h e b r i n g i n g t o g e t h e r of t h e w h i t e y o u t h f r o m t h e city, w i t h t h e i r b l ack c o u n t e r p a r t s in t h e township. H a v i n g i n t e r v i e w e d h i m for my H o n o u r s thesis, I kn e w G a r v e y well, and w a s .invited to t h e fu n e r a l , w h i c h I a t t e n d e d t o g e t h e r with n u m e r o u s o t h e r w h i t e youth. Wh a t f o l l o w s is a d e e r i p t i o n of that occas i o n .

B e f o r e t h e day, G a r v e y ' s "town" (white) f r i e n d s had been a s s u r e d that th e y w o u l d b e e x p e c t e d to a t t e n d h i s funeral. L i k e e v e r y b o d y else, t h e y w e r e g i v e n o f f i c i a l f o r m s f r o m t h e u n d e r t a k e r to help c o l l e c t m o n e y for funeral costs.

The funeral was a big a f f a i r , a t t e n d e d by over 3 0 0 p e o p l e at the L a n q a h o m e of G a r v e y ' s p a r e n t s . T h e r e w e r e s p e a k e r s f r o m all d i f f e r e n t s e c t o r s of t h e c o m m u n i t y at t h e d a y - l o n g funeral: a "reverend" fr o m the chur c h , the k i t t e d - o u t s o c c e r p l a y e r s f r o m G a r v e y ' s s o c c e r club, old p e o p l e , t h e L a n g a Zo n e C h a i r m a n , the R a s t a s . .■.even I was a s ked to say s o m e words, s i n c e I had d o n e r e s e a r c h wi t h G a r v e y for "The U n i v e r s i t y " .

E v e n t u a l l y it w a s ti m e to g o and b u r y t h e body, and w o m e n w e r e asked to st a y b e h i n d at t h e h o u s e (an i n t e r p r e t e r e x p l a i n e d to non x h o s a—s p e a k e r s ) , w h i l e the men f o r m e d a long p r o c e s s i o n w h ich was h e a d e d by t h e R a s tas, c a r r y i n g t h e coffin. Wi t h b o n g o d r u m s beating, the p r o c e s s i o n w o u n d its w a y t h r o u g h Langa. Local y o u t h see m e d s u p r i s e d to s e e that t h e r e w e r e w h i t e s and b l a c k s t o q e t h e r in the p r o c e s s i o n , but t h e m a r c h w e n t on, d e f i a n t l y pa s t the s a n d - b a g g e d and b a r b e d - w i r e s u r r o u n d e d p o l i c e s t a t i o n . . .Af ter t h e b u r ial, h a n d s w e r e w a s h e d , and m o r e s p e e c h e s w e r e made. Later all of t h e y o u n g p e o p l e went o u t s i d e , w h e r e m u s i c p l a y e d and cool dr i n k s w e r e served. E v e n t u a l l y p e o p l e b e g a n to depart, and the w h i t e y o u t h r e t u r n e d to t h e city.

(Note:this is an e x t r a c t f r o m a l o n g e r d e s c r i p t i o n . )

This was p e r h a p s an u n u sual e x p e r i e n c e of i n v o l v e m e n t in a t o w n s h i p matter. O t her e x a m p l e s of i n t e r a c t i o n n i n c l u d e g o i n g to d a n ces, g oing to buy / s m o k e dagga, or on o c c a s i o n , p e r s u i n g ana c r o s s t h e—col our •■]. i ne r e l a t i o n s h i p . All of t h e s e a c t i v i t i e s h a v e r i s k s a t t a c h e d to t h e m for t h e w h i t e youth, wh i c h , w h i l e b e i n g f r i g h t e n i n g , a l s o s e r v e to put t h e m on t h e w r o n g s i d e of the law, just like black p e o p l e w o u l d o f t e n be. The o d d s are heavy, s t o r i e s are e '"> agger at e d : for many, it s e e m s e a s i e r (or safer) to s t a y at h o m e and hear other p e o p l e ' s a c c o unts. It is a g a i n s t t h i s b a c k g r o u n d that the township c o m e s to a s s u m e an a l m o s t m y t h i c a l status.

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S T V I _EE i"\ II I :> F “ SI-I It O S M

An impor t a n t t h e m e w h i c h n e e d s t o b e e x p l o r e d in t h i s t h e s i s is that of the style w h i c h m e m b e r s of t h e c u l t u r e u t i l i s e in t h e i r m a n n e r , appear anc e , a n d p art i c u 1 a r 1 y , in 111 e i r d r e s s .

Many of the r e m a r k s r e c o r d e d p o i n t t o t h e e x i s t e n c e of ant i -m a t e r i al i st and anti - c o n s u m e r ist -feelings. T h e s e s e n t i m e n t s would be p a r t i c u l a r l y m a n i f e s t in a s p e c t s of p e r s o n a l style. C l o t h e s p u r c h a s e d w o u l d n e v e r be "high f a s h i o n " a r t i c l e s , but w o u l d o f t e n be cheaper "off t h e r ack" i t e m s , whic.h wou. 1 d tfien b e i n d i v i d u a 1 ized thro u g i'! e m b r o i d e r y , dyeing, or h and — p r i n t i n g < w o o d c u t s , si l k screen, etc). C l o t h e s and j e w e l r y w o u l d a l s o be m a d e by hand.

Ironically, the p e r s o n a l i z e d i t ems t h u s m a d e h a v e c o m e to be r e g a r d e d as f a s h i o n a b l e in t h eir o w n right. " A l t e r n a t i v e f a s h i o n s h o w s " are held, which s h o w t h e w a r e s of " i n d e p e n d e n t y o u n g d e s i g n e r s " . M o s t of the s t y l e s and f a s h i o n s e m a n a t e f r o m y o u n g p e o p l e w h o a r e pa r t of the s u bculture, but t h e s e are o f t e n a p p r o p r i a t e d ("hija c k e d " or "copied") by commercial f a s h i o n outlets. T h e r e is c o n s i d e r a b l e r e s e n t m e n t w i t h i n the s u b c u l t u r e to t h e " h y p o c r i c y " of t h o s e w h o f i r s t s n e e r at, then copy their styles. T h e i m p r e s s i o n I g a i n e d w a s th a t p e o p l e w i t h i n the s u b c u l t u r e b e l i e v e d that t h e y had p a r t i c u l a r r e a s o n s , b e l i e f s and perspectives w h ich i n s p i r e d the s t y l e s t h e y d e v e l o p e d . T h e y o f t e n express r e s e n t m e n t when t h e s e s t y l e s a r e t a k e n o v e r by " s t r a i g h t " people w h o do not s h a r e t h e s a m e o u t l o o k on life, and w h o c o u l d not possibly c o m p r e h e n d the m e a n i n g b e h i n d the s t y l e . I will i l l u s t r a t e this idea with e x a m p l e s f r o m m y i n t e r v i e w s ;

Q : D O E S Y O U R D R E S S A S I S T Y O U TO C O M M U N I C A T E W I T H P E O P L E ?R: It is c o m m u n i c a t i o n , definitely'. It is i d e n t i f y i n g , o t h e r p e o p l e of our l i t t l e s u b - c u l t u r e . Y o u can i d e n t i f y w i t h t h a t other person, how t h e y dress, t h e y m i g h t feel li k e you... I g u e s s it is c o n s c i o u s . I'm g o i n g down to town, to t h e m a r k e t right now, and I kn o w I will be d i f f e r e n t . . .

Q : A P A R T F R O M S O L I D A R I T Y W I T H O T H E R P E O P L E IN Y O U R "GROUP", W H A T I N S P I R E S T H E P A R T I C U L A R W A Y Y O U D R E S S ? W H A T DO YOU T H I N K OF T H E S E 'ETHNIC' F A S H I O N S ?R z l t ' s t u r n e d i n t o a t r e n d w h i c h p r o d u c e s a n g e r in p e o p l e li k e me. I'll just s o m m e r w e a r s o m e t h i n g , like if I w a n t to go do w n to to w n in a S a r o n g or a robe, then I want to feel f r e e to do it. But if p e o p l e put A f r i c a n c l o t h a r o u n d them, it is cool, A f r i c a n p r i n t or s o m e t h i n g b e c o m e s f a s h i o n , but if I wear a robe, t h e y f r e a k out... it ' s as if it's s o m e t h i n g f u n n y or c h i l d i s h .

Q : W H Y W O U L D YOU W A N T TO W E A R A F R I C A N C L O T H E S ?RsCoz it ' s v e r y c o m f o r t a b l e , it ' s v e r y n i c e to wear. Also, it's e a s y and c h e a p to make, i n s t e a d of b u y i n g f ashion. I do want to try to i d e n t i f y . . . at t h e m a r k e t , a lot of A f r i c a n w o m e n c o m e and look, c h e c k out t h e w a y we dress. M a y b e t h e y laugh, but we do want t o i d e n t i f y s t r o n g e r ........ l i t t l e

t h i n g s li k e that, th e y change? p e o p l e ' s m i nds... we are all g o i n g Lo live here, all g o i n g to cl it? here, so l e t ' s S H A R E s o m e ( h i n g s y u n i~\o ..

In t h i s exa m p l e , R i c k e x p l a i n s how, for s o m e b o d y w i t h i n t h e c o u n t e r c u l t u r e , A f r i c a n p r i n t c l o t h is an i m p o r t a n t symbol of their i d e n t i f i c a t i o n wi t h A f r ica, and m o r e p a r t i c u l a r l y , w i t h b l a c k people. " Straight" s o c i e t y i d e n t i f i e s wi t h E u r o p e and A m e r i c a , so it a n g e r s p e o p l e like Rick to see “s t r a i g h t s " e n j o y i n g A f r i c a n p r i n t for its a e s t h e t i c v a l u e alone. C l e a r l y , s t y l e and a p p e a r a n c e are i m p o r t a n t ways to e x p l o r e (and create) d i s t a n c e w i t h the " s t r a i g h t " world. T h e f o l l o w i n g t r a n s c r i p t of a d i s c u s s i o n with t w o y o u n g w o m e n e x p a n d s on this themes

Q : D O YOU T H I N K TH A T 'ORDINARY' P E O P L E W O U L D T H I N K Y O U R A P P E A N C E IS A B I T U N U S U A L ?J;Ja, but fuck them, yunno. They w o u l d . .. p e o p l e get v e r y heavy, p e o p l e in b a n k s and po s t o f f i c e s p a r t i c u l a r l y , t h e y ' r e ve r y rude. P e o p l e in b a n k s r e f u s e to ca s h our c h e q u e s cos t h e y t h i n k w e ' v e s t o l e n them. P e n n y had to c l o s e her bank a c c o u n t b e c a u s e t h e y w o u l d n ' t c a s h c h e q u e s . .. t h e y we r e s u s p i c i o u s of her b e c a u s e s h e had s h o r t hair. P e o p l e in post o f f i c e s and pi a c e s a r e v e r y r u d e t o you, t h e y t r e a t you l i k e a t e r r o r i s t , yunno. And t h e p o l i c e a r e a l w a y s ve r y heavy., y o u can be l e a d i n g just an o r d i n a r y life, but just d r e s s in b r i g h t c o l o u r s . . .

Q: IS T H A T C O N F R O N T A T I O N I M P O R T A N T TO Y O U ?J: No it's not... it just p i s s e s me off a lot.

Q: DO Y O U L I K E TO D I S T A N C E Y O U R S E L F F R O M T H O S E P E O P L E ?J: No, not at all. I am v e r y n i c e to p e o p l e like that, and p e o p l e a r e o f t e n q u i t e s u p r i s e d wh e n t h e y c h e c k your dress, when y o u open yo u r m o u t h and you s p e a k well, and s m i l e and say "hullo". I am p e r f e c t l y d e c e n t to t h o s e p e o p l e . .. 1 o t s of t h e m are ve r y h e a v y back.

Q : I N W H A T W A Y A R E T H E I R V A L U E S D I F F E R E N T ?J ; l h e y v a l u e t h i n g s li k e jobs, cars, h o u s e s .... m a terial things. And we d o n ' t v a l u e m o n e y so much... it d o e s n ' t m a t t e r if we d o n ' t h a v e so m u c h to eat. We v a l u e as m o r e i m p o r t a n t d o i n g what we W A N T to do, r a t h e r than just g o i n g into the w h o l e 9 - 5 w o r k i n g jorl.

Q : L O O K I N G AT A L L THE P E O P L E W H O W O U L D D R E S S D I F F E R E N T L Y OR D E V I A N T L Y IN C A P E TOWN, DO Y O U T H I N K YOU C O U L D S A Y T H A T TH E Y ALL B E L O N G TO S O M E S O R T OF S U B C U L T U R E ?J:If s o m e b o d y is d r e s s e d c o l o u r f u l l y or s o m e t h i n g , and I w a l k down the street, I s m i l e at them, ev e n if I d o n ' t kn o w them. I m a lot at G r e e n m a r k e t S q u a r e , so I meet a lot of people. S o m e of the y o u n g e r p e o p l e t h i n k it's v e r y cool to be sullen, but w e c a n ' t a f f o r d to. T h e r e a r e so few of us a r o u n d that w e ' v e got to s t i c k t o g e t h e r . . .

For t h e y o u 11- i i n 111 e s u b c u 1 1 u r e s , c 1 a t h i n g a n d s t y i e a r e i m p r t a n t a r eas w h e r e the curtservatism of the* " s t r a i g h t w o r l d " can be c h a 1 len g ed - A s Pen n y p a i n t. s ou t :

Sou.Lh a-frica is still b a c k w a r d s in a lot. of ways. In c l o t h i n g , y o u find r e s t r i c t i o n s p l a c e d on y o u t h r o u g h p e o p l e ' s a w a r e n e s s . .. t h e y t h i n k t h i n g s a r e n ' t p o s s i b l e , but t h e y ARE, and t h e y ' r e p r a c t i c a l .

Q : D O Y O U T H I N K T H E R E IS I N C R E A S E D A F R I C A N I Z A T I O N 5 T Y L E W I Z E ? IS IT J U S T F A S H I O N OR IS IT T H A T P E O P L E ARE A C T U A L L Y I D E N T I F Y I N G M O R E W I T H A R I C A ?P : I t ' s r e a l l y b e e n e x p l o i t e d by c o m m e r c i a l c o m p a n i e s . . . JiEd gar s had 1 e o p a r d d e nims..

On one o c c a s i o n wh e n I v i s i t e d S r e e n m a r k e t S q u a r e , t h e r e w a s c o n s i d e r a b l e a m u s e m e n t a m o n g s t s o m e y o u n g p e o p l e wh e n a w e l l - d r e s s e d h o u s e w i f e a s k e d t h e p r i c e of an o v e r c o a t w h i c h w a s h a n g i n g on a stall. The woman s e e m e d p r e p a r e d to p a r t wi t h a c o n s i d e r a b l e sum of m o n e y to ac q u i r e t h e coat, but t h e s t a l l h o l d e r e x p l a i n e d t h a t it w a s not for sale. "If you r e a l l y w a n t to know, I b o u g h t it at E d g a r s ( D e p a r t m e n t Store) for R15", she e x p lained.

As the s l i g h t l y e m b a r a s s e d h o u s e w i f e w a n d e r e d off, t h e y o u n g p e o p l e present c h a t t e d a b o u t the coat, and h o w it h a d a c q u i r e d a "new va l u e " by being on their stall. T h e y t h o u g h t it fu.nny th a t a m a s s - p r o d u c e d overcoat c ould s u d d e n l y a c q u i r e m a g i c a l " t r e n d y " p r o p e r t i e s b e c a u s e of the c o n text in w h i c h it w a s d i s p l a y e d . E v e r y o n e a g r e e d t h a t t h e incident d e m o n s t r a t e d h o w " f ucked" p e o p l e (in s t r a i g h t soc i e t y ) were.

K .

B I _O S £3 ft FC V"As with any cul t u r a l group, t h e w h i t e y o u t h c u l t u r e has at its disposal a r a n g e of c o l l o q u i a l i s m s and s l a n g terms. S o m e of t h e t e r m s c 11. '• ? d i r i t h 3 s p a p e r i n c 1 u d e :

fucked - broken, p e r v e r t e d , d e g e n e r a t e .

g a n j a — d a g g a (m a r i h u a n a )

jorl — fun, a party, an e n j o y a b l e e x p e r i e n c e

kwela - d a n c e m u s i c d e r i v e d f r o m t o w n s h i p jazz

lank - lots of, big. (used to q u a l i f y and e m p h a s i z e a noun)

raving — to e x p e r i e n c e i n t e n s e e n j o y m e n t , c a r e f r e e n e s s .

The use of t h e s e (and other) w o r d s by w h i t e y o u t h is i n t e r e s t i n g . T h e y are d e r ived f r o m a v a r i e t y of s o u r c e s w h i c h r a n g e f r o m the "Cape Coloured" v e r n a c u l a r (eg.lank) to t h e s l a n g of A m e r i c a n h i p p i e s (eg = r a v i n g ).

For w hite youth, f a m i l i a r i t y w i t h C a p e v e r n a c u l a r or wi t h X h o s a are useful r e s o u r c e s wh e n in s t r a n g e s e t t i n g s . E-ieing " a ble to sp e a k " g o e s a long way t o w a r d s n o r m a l i z i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s . T h i s is a n o t h e r t h e m e I plan to d e v e l o p in my thesis.

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BARTHES, R: Image Music, text. E s s a y s s e l e c t e d and t r a n s l a t e d by Stephen Heath. F o n t a n a , L o n d o n , 1977.

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BUTTERS, STEVE: T h e logic of e n q u i r y of p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n - a

critical review. In Hall and Je-f ferson (eds) , 1976.

CHAMBERS, I AIM: A s t r a e g y -for Living: B l a c k m u s i c and w h i t e subcultures. In Hall and J e f f e r s o n , 1976.

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CLARKE, J , and J E F F E R S O N , T : W o r k i n g c l a s s y o u t h c u l t u r e s . C e n t r e for C o n t e m p o r a r y Cul t u r a l S t u d i e s , U n i v e r s i t y of B i r m i n g h a m , 1973. (Stencilled o c c a s i o n a l paper).

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Apr i 1 1984.CRI T I C A L ARTS: Vol 1, No 4, on Visual A n t h r o p o l o g y (Feb 81); R e t r o s p e c t i v e No 2 (November 1983). P u b l i s h e d by Dept of J o u r n a l i s m and M e d i a S t udies, R h o d e s U n i v e r s i t y , G r a h a m s t o w n .

DRUMMOND, LEE: T h e c u ltural c o n t i n u u m : a t h e o r y of i n t e r s y s t e m s , in MAN, vol 15, N o 2. J u n e 1980.

FRITH, SIMON: S o u n d e f f e c t s - youth, l e i s u r e and t h e p o l i t i c s of rock 'n roll. C o m m u n i c a t i o n and S o c i e t y S e r ies, C o n s t a b l e , L o n d o n 1983.

GOFFMAN, E: The p r e s e n t a t i o n of self in e v e r y d a y life. P e n g u i n 1971.

G U R E V I T C H , M, BEN N E T T , T, C U R RAN, J, A N D W 0 0 L L A C 0 T T , J, (eds): C u l t u r e So c i e t y and the Media. M e t h u e n , L o n don, 1982.

HALL, STUART: T h e r e d i s c o v e r y of 'ideology': r e t u r n of t h e r e p r e s e d in m e dia studies, in G u r e v i t c h , et a l , 1982.

HALL, S, AND J E F F E R S O N , T . : R e s i s t a n c e t h r o u g h r ituals. Y o u t h s u b c u l t u r e s in p o s t w a r B ritain. H u t c h i n s o n U n i v e r s i t y L i b r a r y in as s o c i a t i o n wi t h C e n t r e for C o n t e m p o r a r y C u l t u r a l S t u d i e s , U n i v e r s i t y of B i r m i n g h a m , 1976.

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Collection Number: AG1977

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