News
Skills passed on to community conversations facilitators
Nov 17, 2008 – The Nelson Mandela Foundation convened a community conversation run by newly trained facilitators at Soshanguve, in Gauteng, yesterday.
“Community conversations” is a Nelson Mandela Foundation initiative aimed at facilitating dialogue about HIV/AIDS within communities.
Workshop wraps up 2008 community conversations
Oct 30, 2008 – If not you, who? If not now, when? If not this, what? The urgency of these questions drew people together with a sense of purpose in a workshop at the Nelson Mandela Foundation today.
The workshop was held to conclude the Foundation’s 2008 community conversations series. Delegates shared experiences, explained the methodology used in the dialogues and discussed the way forward.
Mthatha community conversation
Sept 23, 2008 – “This is not the freedom our leaders before us fought for. AIDS is killing us but we seem as if we don’t care. Let’s get together and fight this disease!”
A crowd of 400 people applauded these words from a young woman at the community conversation held in Mthatha on September 3.
Soshanguve community conversation
Sept 12, 2008 – “When I think about how many people I have infected, I feel ashamed. I would like to apologise to all of them. Right now I’m standing in front of my community saying that I am HIV-positive. I’m trying to break the stigma. Let us rectify the mistakes we’ve made. This is the first time I have talked about my status in public and I want to thank God for giving me the courage. A chance to make a change.”
KwaMakhutha community conversation
Sept 8, 2008 – “Next year when the Nelson Mandela Foundation returns, I don’t want people to be putting down stones that represent me.” This powerful reflection came out of the “counting your losses” session at a township dialogue, where participants laid down small stones to represent the lives of loved ones lost through AIDS.
Galeshewe community conversation
Aug 28, 2008 – “They were crying for help from me and I ignored them.” Words of anguish and regret were the first step towards healing and change at a community meeting in Galeshewe last month. “If you don’t cry, you will fall down on the ground with pain some day,” said another of the community members.
