September is Heritage Month. The Plainsman caught up with a few well-loved and respected media, business, academic, drama and naval force personalities about why they are proud to be from Mitchell’s Plain.
Stanley Jacobs, author of Cape Flats Love Affair and Cape Flats Undercover, has fond memories of Mitchell’s Plain.
Mr Jacobs grew up in Parkwood and lived in Grassy Park before moving to Strandfontein 21 years ago. He recalls the many childhood visits he made with his parents and siblings to relatives who lived in Mitchell’s Plain.
“We spent a lot of time with visiting family who lived here. My parents were also churchgoers and we often accompanied them to services in school halls and people’s homes.
“We used to get visitors from Namibia, and there were two places my father would always take them to – the Grand Parade in Cape Town and the Mitchell’s Plain Town Centre, where they would buy shoes in bulk. My father was a builder and I also remember building quite a few houses here with him until 2003,” he said.
Mr Jacobs, who is also the founder of the non-profit organisation and online radio station Cape Flats Stories, believes Mitchell’s Plain is an invaluable thread in the social fabric of the Cape Flats.
“There are amazing, intelligent and good people living here. I love Mitchell’s Plain. It is a place I feel proud of. It has always been a part of my life. What would the Cape Flats be without Mitchell’s Plain?” Mr Jacobs added.
Actress Chantal Stanfield, who now lives in Johannesburg, remains proud of her Mitchell’s Plain heritage.
Ms Stanfield, who is known for her roles in, among others, Montana, Geraldina die Tweede and Sewende Laan, grew up in Strandfontein. She says her reasons for being proudly Mitchell’s Plain are multi-layered.
“When I tell people where I’m from, I have to explain geographically that Strandfontein is an offshoot of Mitchells Plain but still part of Mitchell’s Plain, that I grew up separated from both Muizenberg (where I went to school) and Mitchell’s Plain (where extended family time was spent) by a long sketch of road in either direction.
“The immediate response 99% of the time is, ‘Isn’t it dangerous?’ Sadly, nobody says, ‘Oh cool, don’t you guys have lots of sports people, entertainers, politicians, businesspeople, doctors, etc. from your area?’
“So my little duty when that happens is to hype the place up. We have so many issues every day, but we share the same streets and memories and language with people who fight against the odds and limited expectations of us. So I’m most proud of the spirit and tenacity we have,” said Ms Stanfield.
Nigel Jacobs is an award-winning entrepreneur who grew up in Lentegeur. He is the co-founder of Jacobs Jam, and while he and his family now live in and run their business from Ceres, he is proud of his Mitchell’s Plain roots.
“Hulle weet nie wat ons weet nie (they do not know what we know), is so appropriate for the people from and of Mitchell’s Plain. We have a special kind of determination. We will break through mountains to get where we need to be. We stand out among the crowd. The tough upbringing in Mitchell’s Plain made us resilient, hard as steel and street-smart,” said Mr Jacobs.
Professor Floretta Boonzaier is a respected academic at the University of Cape Town who grew up in Beacon Valley. Earlier this month, she delivered her inaugural lecture, titled “Finding hope and healing while researching violence: Decolonial feminist explorations into gender-based violence (GBV) and femicide at the university’s Chris Hani Lecture Theatre.
“How was it that this girl from Mitchell’s Plain came to do this work at a place like the University of Cape Town, where her experiences have vacillated between the extremes of alienation, isolation and exclusion to those of love, of joy, of belonging and of healing?,” she said in her opening remarks.
Here’s what she had to say about why she is proud to be associated with Mitchell’s Plain.
“Growing up there [in Mitchell’s Plain] taught me the importance of valuing and giving back to your community. It taught me the importance of having a community of care around you, especially in the face of the struggles people were facing. [It also] taught me the importance of cherishing that community,” said Prof Boonzaier.
Captain André Bruce, who was recently appointed as senior staff officer of strategy and planning, in the SA National Defence Force’s Defence Formation in Pretoria, said growing up in Mitchell’s Plain has shaped his world-view and understanding of himself and the community he comes from.
Captain Bruce lived in Portland and Eastridge before settling in Strandfontein.
“My generation did not come willingly to Mitchell’s Plain. We were part of the forced removals of the 70s from District Six, and in my case, Woodstock. In hindsight, it was this experience that formed the core of my involvement in the struggle for freedom in our country.
“The many hardships I experienced personally and that of my family, due to our socio-economic circumstances but also the joys, camaraderie, sense of belonging, good and bad have always been the pull to remain in touch,” said Captain Bruce.
Rocklands resident Simonéh de Bruin is a well-respected journalist and editor of Cape Community Media (CCM), starting as a reporter for the Plainsman in 1997. She captured the stories of Mitchell’s Plain and its people for many years. Later she became assistant news editor, then news editor and assistant editor, to her current position as editor of the Plainsman and its 12 sister titles.
“My family moved to Mitchell’s Plain from Lotus River on May 31 1980 – a politically charged time in the country. It is in Mitchell’s Plain where many of my awakenings started; 1985 was the start of my political awakening as student protests and run-ins with the hated and feared Security Branch often spilled onto our school grounds.
“My Standard 5 year in 1986 was when the seeds for my future career in journalism were sown. My first contact with print media was with the alternative press in the 1980s and early 1990s, with South and Grassroots newspapers, but my first realisation of how the media can move people to action was the newsletters of the Anglican Diocese in the 1980s, which detailed the torture the security police was putting student activists through,” she recalled.
Ms De Bruin is more than passionate about her job and believes that people and integrity are at the heart and soul of journalism, especially community journalism.
“Being able to work in Mitchell’s Plain shaped me in so many ways, life-changing ways – it is here where I have met many people so generous of heart and spirit, who astound and inspire me with how they keep on achieving and triumphing often despite brutal challenges.
“I am proud to call Mitchell’s Plain my home town and I applaud everyone in the community who through their integrity, courage and resolve forge a true legacy for the generations to come.”
