Stellenbosch University Language Centre

Tag: freedom

Let’s talk language freedom in celebration of Freedom Day

On 27 April, South Africa commemorates Freedom Day, marking both the anniversary of the first democratic elections in 1994 and the introduction of the new (interim) Constitution, which guaranteed equal rights and civil liberties to all citizens.  

Thirty-one years on, many South Africans are too young to remember that first day of freedom, while for some, the memory may have faded, or a certain complacency set in. And current concerns with the state of our country and the world may leave few in a celebratory mood. All the more reason to heed Nelson Mandela’s caution: “Freedom can never be taken for granted. Each generation must safeguard it and extend it.”  

Freedom can never be taken for granted. Each generation must safeguard it and extend it.

Freedom Day calls on us to honour the sacrifices made in the struggle against apartheid and to reflect on the liberties won through that sacrifice. And every year it reminds us that with freedom comes the responsibility to use our individual and collective power to make the most of our freedom and enhance the freedom of others. 

The shape and sound of freedom 

Freedom is not only political; it is cultural, linguistic and expressive. The rights to vote, live without fear of persecution, and participate in civic life are foundational. But these rights are incomplete without freedom of expression and linguistic freedom – the power to speak, think, create and communicate in the language of your choice. If your voice is not heard, you cannot participate. If you cannot understand, you cannot access rights. In short, if your language is excluded, so are you. 

The South African Constitution is often praised as one of the most progressive in the world. The Bill of Rights guarantees both freedom of expression and linguistic freedom, recognising twelve official languages and explicitly valuing cultural and linguistic diversity. 

[us_separator]

Freedom is not only political; it is cultural, linguistic and expressive. […] In short, if your language is excluded, so are you. 

[us_separator]

But for many South Africans, especially those whose mother tongue is not English or Afrikaans, the right to fully express themselves in their home language remains more aspirational than actual. English dominates academia, government, media and technology, effectively becoming the gateway to opportunity. English is a class marker as well: those fluent in English can access jobs, justice, and online spaces; those who are not are left behind. In the process, African languages are devalued and often treated as symbols of heritage rather than living systems of thought and communication, eroding cultural pride and limiting intergenerational knowledge transfer. 

Let’s pause here and consider for a moment how this translates into the daily lived experience of millions of South Africans: a Tshivenda speaker who cannot access online legal advice in his home tongue; an isiXhosa-speaking patient struggling to explain symptoms to an English-speaking doctor; a Sepedi-speaking child who must learn to read English before mastering her own language. What does language freedom mean to them? 

[us_image image=”32028″ align=”center”]

Making multilingualism mainstream 

In a truly multilingual South Africa, no language would be excluded, and no one would be left behind. If there were no lack of resources or infrastructure and no gap between policy and practice, there would be government services in all official languages and full access to digital and other media. There would be investment in translation and interpreting services and language technologies for indigenous languages; and there would be support for content creation in underrepresented languages, especially on digital platforms. There would be legal accountability when constitutional language rights are ignored. And there would be mother tongue education and multilingual pedagogies at all levels of schooling. 

We are not quite there – but then, freedom is not a destination; it is a constant striving, a becoming. Language activism is gaining momentum and there is much to celebrate and build on. 

[us_separator]

We are not quite there – but then, freedom is not a destination; it is a constant striving, a becoming. Language activism is gaining momentum and there is much to celebrate and build on. 

[us_separator]

The Nal’ibali reading campaign distributes children’s stories in all South African languages to foster early reading and storytelling at home, and projects like PRAESA promote early literacy in African languages, working to change the schooling system from the ground up. At the same time, translanguaging offers a potentially transformational approach to learning and teaching that engages linguistic diversity additively and equitably in the classroom in a way that empowers multilingual learners and values the knowledge they bring. 

In higher education, the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) finalised a language policy framework (2020) aimed at promoting multilingualism and the development of indigenous languages at South Africa’s 26 public universities; and in 2023 the department set aside about R70 million over a three-year period to help universities achieve these goals. Stellenbosch University (SU) has used the funds received so far to boost its endeavours to promote social cohesion and inclusion through language at the institution. The promotion of a multilingual mindset at SU is an ongoing initiative, and is something for which the whole University community, at an academic and social level, shares responsibility. Creating a welcoming environment on campus and promoting a multilingual mindset among the broad campus community are overarching goals, and examples of more practical endeavours are the Building Communities through Multilingualism workshop series offered to the SU student community and staff members, and isiXhosa and South African Sign Language (SASL) courses offered to students and staff, free of charge. Another exciting initiative at SU is isiXhosa terminology development. 

[us_separator]

The promotion of a multilingual mindset at SU is an ongoing initiative, and is something for which the whole University community, at an academic and social level, shares responsibility.

[us_separator]

In the digital space, community publishers and creators are reaching audiences, telling stories and building cultural capital in online poetry slams, podcasts, or TikTok videos in, among others,  isiXhosa, Setswana and Xitsonga; while the Masakhane initiative brings together African IT experts to develop natural language processing tools for African languages, ensuring they are represented in AI, voice technology and machine translation.  

Freedom is a doing word 

Language freedom is not self-actualising – it is something we must embody, act on and defend to give it meaning. When we choose to speak in our languages, we affirm their worth. When we demand inclusion – in the classroom, technology, health care or the media – we honour the right of all to be heard. And when we teach, create, and listen across linguistic borders, we build a freer, more equal society. 

[us_separator]

When we choose to speak in our languages, we affirm their worth.

–  by Tania Botha

[us_separator]
Tags: , , , , ,

Freedom Day reflections: Language, expression and responsibility

Spiderman hit the nail on the head when he said something to the effect of “with great power comes great responsibility”. The same applies to freedom, as Eleanor Roosevelt rightly said: “With freedom comes responsibility.”

While we’re living, learning and thriving (and, well, sometimes just surviving) in a democratic, multilingual South Africa, we also have the responsibility to grapple with the concept of freedom and the responsibilities that true freedom brings with it, particularly when we reflect on what Freedom Day, celebrated on 27 April, means to us.

Freedom of expression

According to Article 19, an international think-do organisation concerning itself with freedom of expression, “freedom of expression enables dialogue, builds understanding, and increases public knowledge”. We as the Language Centre agree: Being able to share ideas and information freely makes us all smarter and helps our communities thrive.

As South Africans we have the benefit of many hard-won freedoms in our country today, not least the freedom of communicating in our mother language or a chosen language. More than that, there is space for many voices and many opinions – space to be heard.

 

What does freedom mean to us at the Stellenbosch University (SU) Language Centre?

To us, freedom is not merely a concept; it is a guiding principle that shapes our interaction with the world around us as well as our approach to learning and teaching. It begins with freedom of expression – the fundamental right to articulate our thoughts, emotions and ideas in a language of our choosing. In the modules, workshops and short courses we offer, we strive to create spaces where participants feel free and safe to express themselves authentically, to ask questions, and to engage in meaningful dialogue with those around them. We also endeavour to create such spaces across campus with our language and interpreting services.

Creativity

Freedom also encompasses the liberty to be creative – to explore new linguistic landscapes, experiment with different modes of expression, and push the boundaries of traditional language conventions. We encourage those with whom we collaborate – students, participants and clients alike – to unleash their imagination and harness the power of language to convey their unique perspectives and experiences, be it in isiXhosa, Afrikaans, English or SA Sign Language.

Freedom is not only the absence of external constraints, but is also the presence of environments that enable us to realise and express our full potential. This means that we need to create inclusive environments where diverse voices and languages are not just heard and seen, but are welcomed. It comes down to fostering and encouraging a culture of tolerance and respect, and promoting fair access to opportunities and resources, not least when it comes to language – essentially a multilingual mindset. At SU and the Language Centre, this, for example, translates to having access to interpreting services during lectures as well as the opportunity to hear many languages, both local and international languages, used freely on campus and in our communities.

 

A very human longing

The concept of freedom contains within itself our fundamental human longing for autonomy, dignity and self-expression. It is a dynamic and evolving principle that lies at the heart of our human experience, driving progress, justice and the pursuit of a more just and equal world. A world where all voices have a place, and all stories can be told and appreciated. In short – a multilingual and multicultural world.

Join us at the Language Centre as we embrace the transformative power of language and learn from the authentic voices of those around us, on campus, in our classrooms and in our homes – also about freedom.

Feel the freedom!

– by Esther van der Vyver (edited by Susan Lotz and Ingrid Swanepoel)

 

Tags: , , , ,

So many kinds of freedom

“I never even knew that that kind of personal freedom existed, because I had never experienced it before …”

Liselotte Voets, a Belgian exchange student from KU Leuven  (Catholic University of Leuven) who visited SU last year as part of her studies towards a master’s degree in philosophy, attended the Language Centre’s Afrikaans course for Dutch-speaking students while she was in South Africa.

In celebration of Freedom Day on 27 April, she shares her thoughts about freedom with us, originally in Afrikaans, but translated into English below.

My exchange visit of five and a half months in Stellenbosch kicked off in February 2022. Choosing South Africa was obvious to me: the cultures, the people, the scenery, the history, the mountains and the climate appealed to me. All these aspects naturally made a huge positive impression on me. One result of my visit I had not expected, is the new way in which I now look at the concept of freedom. If I had to explain in an intuitive way how I experienced freedom in South Africa, I would first of all mention the landscape. In my opinion, the vastness of the country represents in a very symbolical way what it means to be free in South Africa. There are still so many open spaces that can be filled. The possibilities seem to be endless. If one compares it with Belgium, where I am from, you have to conclude that most of Belgium has been built up. It really is a challenge to find a piece of open land from where one can see the horizon across an open expanse; where everything is not covered with walls, houses, streets, towns and cities.

[us_hwrapper]

 It feels as if one is being watched – always and everywhere – and as if you can’t escape and commune with nature.”

[/us_hwrapper]

Now that I’m back in Belgium, I find it even more difficult to endure, and I miss South Africa so much more. Of course, in Belgium we have more (a feeling of) safety and security. The price we have to pay for it is our personal freedom. However, I never even knew that that kind of personal freedom existed, because I had never experienced it before. Perhaps it is also typical of Europeans to regard the kind of freedom we know as the only kind of freedom and not to leave room for other interpretations. But this is actually a contradiction in terms. I should have known that ‘freedom’ can’t be encapsulated in a single viewpoint. I’ve also noticed this kind of personal freedom in the South Africans I’ve met: they are not being lived (their lives are not being ruled and regulated), but they live on their own accord; they welcome others with open arms and start each day courageously. This great personal freedom in South Africa seems to come at a price, though, and is something that should absolutely not be underestimated: many people are left to their own devices – to fend for themselves. They need to survive on their own. Seen from that perspective, my impression was that some South Africans see the South African landscape more as a kind of emptiness than an open future. I think, and sincerely hope, that this can still change.

Blog by Liselotte Voets; translated by Ingrid Swanepoel

Tags: , , , , , , ,