Jeremy Collins
On Manenberg Avenue in Cape Town there is a wall painted with a portrait of slain rapper Tupac Shakur, depicting the material rewards of thug life. Two blocks away is a new mural, with an entirely different message – protesting domestic violence.
Its unveiling on National Women’s Day, on August 9, in the presence of Cape Town’s deputy mayor and representatives from the Department of Justice, attested to the importance of the mural’s content.
It was commissioned by a support group for victims of domestic violence in Manenberg and initiated by women’s group Gender Advocacy Programme as a response to the continuing abuse which undermines poverty-stricken communities.
The Community Arts Project (CAP) was commissioned to design and produce the work, and assigned two of its students and an external co-ordinator to the project.
Karenhof, a council-owned apartment block, was chosen as its location for its visibility.
Manenberg is haunted by the spectre of lawlessness and violence to which it is relegated by a media-aided perception of the place as a dormitory suburb whose inhabitants have run amok. While the Cape Town city council’s intention is to alter such perceptions through ventures such as the Safer City Project , a deep-rooted and persistent culture of violence is a formidable adversary.
It was not without some trepidation that the mural’s artists, Alex Smith, Mzwandile “Banda” Fulani and Megan Tjasink, ventured into the area. But residents of Karenhof ensured that they were able to complete the mural without interference.
The overall response has been positive, with the residents of Karenhof taking pride in the work. The mural stands as a testament to those who have taken a stand against abuse in the home.