contact
District Six Museum
P.O. Box 10176
Caledon Square
Cape Town 7905
South Africa
Tel: 27-21-461-4735
Fax: 27-21-461-8745
African Sites of Conscience Network
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Dialogues for Democracy
The Challenge
In the coming year, hundreds of people will return to District Six to rebuild their lives. They will bring children and grandchildren, who never lived in District Six, and who know it only from the stories of their elders. Children and grandchildren of parents and grandparents who grew up in Apartheid have few if any role models for assuming their rights and taking on responsibilities as full and equal citizens in a newly democratic country. The District Six Museum’s Dialogues for Democracy program is designed to help provide the information and role models necessary to make this transition.
Dialogues for Democracy Questions
- Do I belong?
- What are my rights and responsibilities as a citizen?
- How does my city work?
- How can I make my city work for me?
The Program
The Children’s Adventure Tour will orient children of returning District Six families to their new environment by giving them a history of the city and its institutions and teaching them how to function as full citizens in a democratic government. Stops may include the children’s court, Supreme Court, library, school, Parliament, police and fire stations, and social service agencies. As the program develops, the target audience will expand to include more privileged children, including the children of Afrikaners, who are also struggling to find footing in a new South Africa.
Impact
A particularly important objective is to introduce children from diverse backgrounds and offer a neutral forum in which they can engage with each other about the city they share. Further, it will rebuild a sense of belonging and entitlement among formerly disfranchised and displaced citizens, and influence new citizenry to be active participants in building a healthy community.