Stumbling across the past

Yesterday I was busy in Melville, and I decided to pop into Koliander, one of those home industries food and craft shops to see if they had anything interesting - and they certainly did, although it was not quite what I expected.

Displayed on a table was a huge bound collection of all the original Sunday Times newspapers from 1947. Next to the collection were a couple of cheap filofaxes covered with pages of the old newspapers using transparent contact sheets. The idea being that you choose a page from the newspaper collection to cover a filofax, and hey presto you have a cool funky gift. Except, instead of looking cool and funky the filofaxes just looked like cheap old filofaxes badly covered in old newspapers. I suppose being the geek that I am, with an avid interest in politics and political history, I could't believe that such an incredible first hand historical record was being put to such, well, such a cretinous purpose.

I spent about half an hour leafing through the papers and reading some of the stories - some of the main stories in 1947 included the partition of India and Pakistan, the creation of the state of Israel, the rebuilding of post-war German society and the "native problem" in South Africa - all covered from a strong pro-British viewpoint. It was absolutely fascinating to read history as it was unfolding at the time instead of how it gets told now looking back, and from my brief reading I became aware of just how much history gets changed, and reshaped into something different from what it actually was at the time.

For one, with regard to the rebuilding of post-war Germany, in 1947 journalists were describing the allies running of that country as chaotic and uncordinated giving rise to fears that German's would turn to Communism. Western history's retelling of the Marshall Plan always gave me the impression that it was some sort of perfect plan from day one, that got drawn up, put in place, problems solved. As for the birth of Israel, in 1947 western sympathy seemed to be clearly on the side of the jews and against the Arabs and there was much support for for the creation of a jewish homeland - something that the world now seems to have conveniently forgotten.

What did not surprise me was the coverage of local news. In 1947 Sunday Times sympathy seemed to lie clearly with General Jan Smuts and the United Party. South Africa was viewed as an extention of British society, and far more front page coverage was given over to international affairs than to local politics. Black people were viewed as troublesome and uncivilised "natives" seeming to exist on the fringes of society, and from reading the Sunday Times in 1947, one would be forgiven for thinking that there were just a few Black people living in South Africa among a huge white population instead of the other way around.

Maybe I'll sneak back into the Koliander today and carry on reading seeing that I have a few days leave. Hmmm...maybe I should try and find out who the collection belongs to and see if I can buy it. I can't believe that this amazing peice of history is being put to such an uncivilised end, it's just not right.

Comments

[owukori]

Hi Mzansi

I need to get in touch with you about volunteering from Global voices - could you email me please!
thanks

[steve]

Wow, this is one of the best local blog posts I have ever had the pleasure to read. Brilliant stuff Mzansi!

And btw, your writing is superb.

[Bronwyn]

Thanks Steve!!!!! Much appreciated.

[nafi]

Oh, aren't old print media publications incredible?! One just have to keep reminding oneself of all the OTHER information we have, otherwise those old news articles could really pull you into the same hole as it did a lot of the people of that time.

I grew up in big towns and cities in South Africa, and never knew ONE black person, until I started working. No, no domestic angel in my ancient past, believe it or not.

This could explain why the media could report in such a fashion. I recently learned that a single row of brick houses were erected in Bloemfontein, to hide the squalor of the black population from the eyes of the visiting Prince of Whales.

It is today a national monument, I think.

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