I apologize for my lack of posts about my project. I have gotten into the habit of going on hikes in the afternoon. This gives me time to reflect and grapple with the information I gathered during the day. Even more, I get to gaze at the beauty of Cape Town. It is truly a remarkable place. The fusion of city and nature is unlike any place I have ever been. The only issue is that I keep returning home and wanting to relax as opposed to return to the subjects that I have been contemplating for an hour or two or three sometimes (I can never get myself to turn around to go home once I start walking). Thus, I have yet to update you on last week in terms of my project. Well, here is what I will call the State of My Ingram Summer Project. I will issue this post in two installments.
Last week, I am proud to share with you that I have made some great breakthroughs in relation to my research. On Monday, I went to Stellenbosch - the second oldest town in the Western Cape (the first being Cape Town). It is a lovely place - truly picturesque. Surrounded by nature, the town has maintained its Dutch (I looked up the origin) architecture. The buildings are quaint, white, and well maintained. I had to resist from walking into every art gallery and cafe as I wandered around during the hour I had between my arrival by train and meeting. There is a sculpture festival occurring in the town currently. One of the pieces is a clothesline with shirts hanging. It was located in the middle of a square in the town. I was originally puzzled by what I thought were drying clothes. I understood why that was there when I saw the brochure about the festival, which featured that particular sculpture. I am going to have to return to Stellenbosch on a day when I do not have a meeting so I can explore more and go to the famous wineries. I also need to find out whether that clothesline is literally that or made out of steel or something crazy!
My purpose for being in Stellenbosch was to interview Corne Rossouw, Liana Bester, and Wentzel Bernard. All three of these people have been or are currently involved with sports for people with disabilities. Corne has previously been in charge of South Africa's Paralympic Team (which is better than the SA Olympic team and as a result is very popular). She was the kindest lady and so knowledgeable. It was so fascinating to here the answers to my questions (which are the same in every interview) from the perspectives of people that have trained people with disabilities to be athletes. This interview proved to me that the obstacles faced by people with disabilities can be overcome when people invest time in finding ways to adapt tasks. I was moved by one things that I believe Corne said and the others agreed with. She explained that she has the same expectations for every athlete that she asseses - whether the person is abled or disabled. For example, if a requirement for a team is that someone runs a distance in a certain amount of time, then she expects that the person does it. Perhaps the person does this with a prosthetic leg or in a wheelchair, but in order to be considered, they have to meet standards. I lofed this notion because it epitomizew the idea of inclusion and emphasizes the fact that with adaptations people with disabilities can be successful.
One of the challenges with this interview was that three people were providing answers. Typing was difficult because there were interruptions, etc. I am so happy that I recorded it so I can, as I will with every interview, transcribe it (This is the only upcoming task that I am sort of dreading). I will put more direct quotes on here once that process is finished.
On Tuesday, I met with the director of an NGO that provides assistance to people with disabilities in addition to conducting advocacy work. For instance, she was involved in the starting of Dial a Ride, a program that has been mentioned in nearly every interview I have conducted. Dial a Ride is a program, run by the City of Cape Town that provides transportation for people with disabilities. It is a fleet of about 20 mini-busses equipped for people in wheelchairs and other challenges. Cape Town is the only city in South Africa with such a program. The only thing is that Dial a Ride currently does not have nearly the capacity to help everyone in need of its services. One estimate that I have been given is that there are 6,000 people on a waiting list. Even more, the service is often unreliable as traffic and a limited time frame (it runs from 5am to 7 PM) make it efficiency difficult. I heard one account of someone who is picked up at 5 am despite not starting work until 9. Even more, the building that she works in does not open until 7 so she often has to wait outside. The bottom line is that Dial a Ride is a wonderful idea with many kinks. Despite its negatives (which people have been very quick to point out), I think it is important to note that it is exciting that Cape Town is at least attempting to address the number one barrier to the employment of people with disabilities - transportation.
On Wednesday, I met with the most remarkable and kind woman - Hillary Lane. She has Cerebral Palsy and currently is the CEO of the Western Cape Cerebral Palsy Organization. She is extremely passionate and full of information, opinions, and ideas. One of the most fascinating facts about her is that she recently walked the New York Marathon. It took her 10 hours, but she did it. Here is a video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMdxPZ_4nVw and an article - http://www.iol.co.za/capeargus/from-cerebal-palsy-to-the-nyc-marathon-1.1157435#.T_NsTBwwJV8 - about her walking of the marathon. It is truly an impressive feat. Please watch and read. The video focuses on the technology that was used to help her reach this goal. Ironically, the technology was a product of the University of Stellenbosch, a fact that connects to the start of this post. Therefore, I am going to end Part 1 of 2 of my project update with that fact.
FYI: Tonight is my second to last night with Caesar family as I am moving to Nicky's place on Thursday morning. I recieved a preview of where I will be living on Sunday when I visited Nicky. I am so lucky. For the past few weeks, I have lived by the mountains and now I am going to live by the sea! I am going to spend my final night with the Caesar making hamburgers for July 4th celebration (a happy one to everyone). Goodnight and look for part 2 tomorrow.
- Feldman
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