Soweto: It made my heart turn over

“You may ask my people anything but there is one thing you must do first. You must introduce yourself and shake that person’s hands. And then you may ask them anything.”

My guide through the South African township of Soweto said that he, himself, lived there. His instructions to me were a reminder that all human beings must be treated with dignity because they are made in the image of God. We were walking through their village of corrugated tin shacks that were their homes.

He introduced me to a lovely, soft-spoken woman who said that she was 83 years old. She apologized that she had not yet swept the dirt floor of her one-room shack. Inside the shack there was a small cook stove and a cot. I asked how many people slept in that room at night. She said that eight of them did. I asked where they slept and she said, “Three children sleep on the cot. Five of us adults sleep on the floor.”

“But isn’t it extremely cold in the winter?” I asked. “Oh, yes, so cold,” she said with a smile. She showed us that the toilets were about a quarter of a mile from her home and the water tap was about the same distance. The shack I am telling you about looks very much like the church in the picture on this page.

During most of the 20th century, South Africa was ruled by a system called Apartheid, which was based on the segregation of races. The term comes from an Afrikaans word meaning 'apartness'. After the 1948 elections all the people of color were told that they must leave their homes and live in “townships.” Many people lost their homes, land, and all of their property because of this resettlement.

I met many people in Soweto but my thoughts return often to the woman I just told you about. I am ashamed that I don’t even remember her name.