youth day
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Liberian musician, Indian student and Angolan author named as global creative arts contest winners!
What do a Liberian rapper, an Indian journalism graduate and a young Angolan author have in common?
They are all winners of a global contest that encourages young creatives to imagine the kind of democracy they would like to live in.Hosted by global civil society alliance, CIVICUS, under the theme, “Re-imagining Democracy: In Search of Silenced Voices”, the Through Arts and Imagination creative arts competition was organised to celebrate International Youth Day on August 12. The aim was to encourage young creative artists to share their vision of what democracy should be and to raise the silenced voices of youth globally.
Contestants submitted entries in three creative arts categories: written arts, which included poems, short stories and essays of 500 words or less; visual arts, which included drawings, paintings, cartoons and photography; and multimedia arts, which included short films of no longer than 2 minutes and songs. Creators had to be under 30 years old to enter.
Prizes for the winners, whose submissions included a song, a poem and a cartoon, include a USD300 cash prize to be donated to a social change organisation of their choice.
Music artist, Amaze, wowed judges with his song promoting voter awareness in his native Liberia, entitled “Know Who To Vote For”.
“I feel democracy should be everybody business,” said Amaze.
“My inspiration was to educate voters to vote right and not base on ethnicity, scholarships, or religious background,” said Amaze.
He was one of 15 finalists and was selected for the best multimedia arts entry from among dozens of entries from across the globe by a panel of judges and almost 1,500 online voters worldwide.
Amaze, whose name is Henry Amazin Toe, started his music career at age 14 in Guinea and is currently a hipco Accountability Ambassador who mentors other underground artists to create music for social change. Hipco is a genre of dance music that blends hip-hop, R&B and traditional Liberian music with lyrics in colloquial dialects spoken in Liberia.
The contest’s the visual arts category winner, Vandita Sariya from India, came out tops for a cartoon, entitled “One” that she says was inspired by a surge in intolerance in society where she lives.
“A wave of pseudo-nationalism is going on in my country, India and people are judging and even killing others for who they are, what they look like, what they eat and what their beliefs are,” said Sariya.
Sariya, who says she plans to donate her prize money to towards children’s education and nourishment, is an emerging creative artist who has been practicing her craft for just six months.
A poem by Angolan author, Cláudia Cassoma – encouraging youth to see themselves as the “master key” to all the solutions they seek – was chosen as the winner of the written arts category.
Cassoma, who has had four books published, says the poem, entitled Chave Mestra" (Portuguese for master key), was inspired by a common attitude she encounters among young people in her country, Angola and globally.
“Today, one thing I hear a lot are complaints by youth about the million things that are wrong with the world while they themselves are doing nothing. Usually, that's the case because they feel they can't do anything,” Cassoma said.
“The piece is a message for youth to reimagine democracy by seeing themselves as the master key, the key to solve any if not all issues we face,” she said.
Said Elisa Novoa, CIVICUS Youth Working Group coordinator: “The aim of this contest was to give a space for young people to express a vision for the kind of democracy they desire. It was also an opportunity to mobilise young creative minds from every corner of the globe, offering a platform to amplify their messages related to the respect of democratic values and social justice.”
“In a world where information is shared with so much hate, discrimination and stigmatisation, we want to enable arts to be a tool to share messages of hope, justice and equality,” said Novoa.
The winning entries will also be featured in CIVICUS’ State of Civil Society Report 2018, to be released in September 2018.
ENDS.
For more information, contact:
Grant Clark
CIVICUS Communications team
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Through Arts and Imagination: 2018 Youth Day Celebration - in search of silenced voices
Youth Arts Contest Seeks Out Silenced Voices to Reimagine Democracy
Johannesburg, 18 April 2018 - What kind of country would South Africa be today if young people had not first raised their voices and taken action more than three decades ago?
And today, how can the many silenced voices of youth be heard, to express a vision for the kind of democracy they desire?
‘Through Arts and Imagination’ is a newly launched contest seeking bold and original creative arts - music, poetry, art, media – that present youth perspectives on “re-imagining democracy.” To celebrate Youth Day on 16 June, the Youth Working Group of CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, in partnership with Emerging Leaders in Internet Governance (ELIG) and Woke Project have kicked off the contest in search of silenced voices.
“In a world in which our democracy and fundamental freedoms are under increasing threat, a world where the voices of young people are silenced and marginalised, we believe that it is up to this generation to re-imagine the democracy we want to live in,” said Elisa Novoa, of the CIVICUS Youth Working Group.
“And what better way to give voice to that mission, and draw out the best that youth have to offer than through a creative arts contest,” Novoa said.
The contest will culminate in a creative symposium of young voices held in 16 June, under the theme “Re-imagining Democracy: in search of silenced voices.”
Youth are crucial to development, change and growth. And the arts have always played a critical role in the struggle for freedom, human rights and democracy. This symposium will engage the voices of young people through the creative arts - to speak your truth and share your vision for the world they want to live and grow in. Youth voices and the contributions of young people towards social change are vital.
About the Contest
Are you:
Creative, original and eager to share your unique perspective on how we can re-imagine our democracy today?
Living to the beat of your own drum, in a world where your voice is misunderstood?
Then, this is your chance to share your vision and be heard.
For too long we have lived in silence and fear of being judged.
The creative arts - music, poetry, art, media - reach across all language barriers to connect with millions of people.Share your written, visual or multimedia arts, to be judged in the following categories:
Art Categories
- Written arts: poems, short stories, essays (500 words max.)
- Visual arts: drawings, cartoons, paintings
- Multimedia arts: short films (2min max), songs
Awards
- The top 15 artists selected will be awarded an all-expenses-paid one-day workshop on storytelling and digital security, run by CIVICUS, in Johannesburg, on Friday 15 June 2018.
- The top 2 symposium participants selected in each art category also will win a cash prize - with 50% of the prize money going to the artist personally and the other 50% going to an organisation of their choice, as a donation. The 1st and 2nd place winners will also be awarded fee-waived voting membership to CIVICUS (after following the regular voting membership registration procedure).
• 1st place prize: R6,000
• 2nd place prize: R3,600
- The best three (3) submissions (the first place winners of each category) will be published in the online 2018 State of Civil Society Report.
Participants Eligibility
Authors must:
• Be 30 or under by 16 June 2018
• Be based in South Africa
• Meet the deadline (30th April 2018)
• Submit one application per person
• Submit Original content
• Submit in any of the 11 South African official languages
Please submit your application by filling in this form: https://civicus.org/index.php/youth-day-symposium
The deadline for submissions is 30th April 2018. -
Youth Day Submissions
Youth Day 2018 Creative Symposium:Re-Imagining Democracy: in search of silenced voices
We are delighted to announce the finalists of the 2018 South African Youth Day Creative Symposium! After a very difficult selection process, nice amazing young artists were selected as finalists to get the chance to be featured in the 2018 State of Civil Society Report and receive a cash prize of up to 6,000R that can be donated to the organisation or cause of their choice.
To help them win, please vote for your favorite artist before June 10 and if you are in Johannesburg, join them at an open mic event on Saturday 16 June from 9:00 am to 13:00 at the ASRI where they will showcase their work.
To RSVP for the event please complete this form.
For the third time this year, the Youth Day Celebration is run in collaboration with members of CIVICUS Youth Working Group in South Africa– in 2018 we partnered with Emerging Leaders in Internet Governance (ELIG-SA) and Woke Project.
The online general public vote will represent a 60% of the final evaluation score to select the top 2 in each category. The remaining 40% will be based on the audience reception and the selected judging panel present at the Youth Day open mic celebration on Saturday 16 June in Johannesburg.
To vote go to our Facebook and Twitter pages.
And the finalists are:
WRITTEN CATEGORY Eyethu Mfazwe: “Silenced youth wanting to be unsilenced”
“Silenced youth wanting to be unsilenced” is about how the youth of today are looked down upon by people who are not youth. This poem talks about the potential of youth and the amazing things today's youth has done.
How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"I believe youth action amplifies democracy principles and perspectives in South Africa by fighting for the rights of the youth and equality. Mostly through protests. For example, university students marching for a free tertiary education in the Fees Must Fall movement over the past two years. The Department of Higher Education has been forced to prioritize a new fees model for tertiary education. This fees model is to accommodate students from all walks of life. Youth action has gotten our government to act on the rights stipulated in our Bill of Rights. It has also forced the government to consider the youth’s freedom of expression as allowed in our democratic state." - Eyethu
@eyethuintsikeleloziyeka.mfazwe
Like/Share/Retweet to Vote for Eyethu on Facebook and Twitter.
Kholwani Ndhlovu: "Ipassa"
“Ipassa” is the story about the lives of asylum applicants in Johannesburg. Detailing the experience and helping the reader see things from the perspective of one who has lived it. The Main aim of Ipassa is to hold a mirror up to those in the majority to show what rules created to suit the majority can become a targeted weapon against minorities. In the work I seek to expose the unspoken truth about the condition of the new minority that is foreign nationals.
How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"It would seem to me that the youth would be the main driver of democracy in South Africa. It is the youth in the concerted use of social media and public space to allow for the sharing of diverse ideas. The millennial generation is a prime example as they have shown the ability to change and impact democracy across the globe. A prime example could be the Arab spring and The Fees must fall movement." Kholwani @KholwaniNdhlovu
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Kholwani on Facebook and Twitter
Mzungawi Mizo Maclean: “Was it ever real?”
The art piece “Was it ever real” is inspired by a concern that rose in the author's mind. The youth is concerned about not being able to freely express themselves because they fear being judged by their peers and community. They’re concerned about not being able to tell a story not because of shyness or lack of self esteem but because how the community might receive and give feedback in a form or judgement.
The youth has a variety of platforms to freely express themselves to their heart's content and that is through dance, poetry, painting/drawing, music etc. This art piece comes from the very core of my heart and it involves the story of a young girl who spent her last days making the world a better place through her angelic voice. She spent her days in loneliness with nobody to talk to and at the same time she was dying in sickness. She dedicated her last strength to pour her heart out and sing to the world around her. The city listened to her voice and it filled their hearts with warmth. This is what we as youth need to do, to live to serve one another, to tell a story through the gifts and talents that God has placed within us.
The art piece relates to the Reimagining Democracy because we need to start using more “we” in our sentences and less of “I”. We as youth need to serve each other. We need to be thoughtful of each other’s lives and work together as a community. A famous saying goes “The greatest in the Kingdom is the one who serves” The gaps between our fingers are meant for filling so let us hold each with gladness in our hearts and serve. @Jiggymizo
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Mzungawi on Facebook and Twitter
Siphesihle Mnisi, Refilwe Mametja and Pako Thobakgale: “The Battle for Africa”
The Battle for Africa historicizes and reimagines the complex psychosocial and socio-economic factors that the Phenomenal Rise club see’s their peers struggling with every day, the Clubs response to this historical injustice is to re-enchant their peers and draw them away from the negativity of young people’s exposure to vulnerability and risk.
How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
The Nellmapius Phenomenal Rise Club believes that taking action at school (Nellmapius Secondary School) creates a space where they can explore the risk factors that make adolescent boys and girls vulnerable to HIV, teen pregnancy, violence and other social ills in our society. As a club they recognize that young women and girls are also at risk through high risk behaviours such as transactional and age disparate sex, and as such they seek to RISE the voices of their peers and contribute towards the democratic development of responsive social support structures.
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Siphesihle, Refilwe and Pako on Facebook and Twitter
Malwande Mthethwa: “Never The Subject”
My main inspiration was a documentary "In and Out of Africa" published in 2004. My piece is an attempt to understand or explain why as Africans we often feel we cannot take charge of our own narratives. We have forever been objects because in many ways that is the only position we have been afforded. The greater question is "how do we move from that?" Never The Subject speaks of acknowledgement. I truly believe that the first step to creating solutions is to recognize the problems. The journey to solution and change begins when we accept the flaws. Often, especially as young people, we tend to want to quickly see results. We quickly want to see the day when we can all be equals. However, how will we get there if we fear the process? I believe the beginning of that process is to say “yes, there is a problem”. Someone once told me “if you cannot name it, you cannot overcome it.” My piece tries to acknowledge a flawed, hierarchical system with generational consequences, such as power and racial dynamics as well as inequalities in our country.
How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"I am honestly not too sure how best to answer this question. I think as the youth in today’s time we are fortunate enough to have many more resources than the youth of previous generations. We have technology and more access to knowledge. As much as access to formal education is still limited, we have opportunities to create new theories and ask questions. In recent years youth action has become more open than ever as young people realize that their voice matters. This is a manner to amplify democracy principles through youth action. This action although in most cases begins in public protest, needs to lead to action plans and processes in order for us to reimagine democracy in our nation." @malwande.mthethwa
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Malwande on Facebook and Twitter
VISUAL ARTS CATEGORY Cay-Low Mbedzi: “Unity”
“Unity” speaks about bringing people from different groups (races and gender) together which can then allow one to practice his or her democratic rights without fear so in this sense unity is then the key to strengthen and deepen democracy .How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"It allows for a participatory democracy in which the voice of young people can be used as a tool to change and shape policy and direction. When the youth decides on its fate, democracy is uplifted and positive contribution and solutions are brought together to impact societies." @caylee
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Cay-Low on Facebook and Twitter
Refilwe Mosiane: "Mosadi o tswara thipa ka bogaleng"
I choose mama Winnie's youthful power stance. It mural that should encourage the youth of today to know their rights and to speak out.@Monyadiwa_mosiane
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Refilwe on Facebook and Twitter
MULTIMEDIA CATEGORY Tebogo Chologi, a.k.a. Mrembola: "One for the Ghetto"
Is a story about people stealing anti-retroviral medication designated for HIV/AIDS infected people to use as drugs. It is a stolen right to access to treatment for HIV/AIDS.“One for the Ghetto” relates to reimagines democracy in the sense that in a democratic environment, people have a right to access to health care and other basic services, yet there are criminal elements “stealing one’s democratic right” in this instance by stealing a youth’s anti-retroviral medication, therefore denying him his basic rights in terms of the Bill of Rights in a democratic country.How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"Youth, have a powerful vocal cord to voice their opinions and ideas through various platforms on how to run a democracy and how to contribute to the community and the country at large to make sure that whatever their inputs, it will assist in making South Africa a better place for all, and in particular themselves as youth, to prosper in a democratic environment. Youth in action can positively create environments that are economically and socially uplifting for all participants where youth gather themselves to create job opportunities, sustainable living environments and caring communities. The youth’s voice must never be undermined as they are the future of a democratic country and should therefore always be listened to." - Tebogo @tchologi
Like/Share/Retweet to vote for Tebogo on Facebook and Twitter
FELE:"Colours"
I wrote this song based on my daily struggles as a young black female and i was surprised at how different people from different backgrounds connected to it. I would like to think all of my work expresses, comments and reacts to ubiquitous problems and injustices that the youth is currently facing, from ism's and phobias to everyday life as youth in South Africa. The same can be said for Colours which comments on the idea of democracy and equality in our country and how we have come far from apartheid but we tend to over look the negative things, just to keep the image of the rainbow nation. The song is filled with metaphors that are meant to make the listener rethink the events that happen around them. This relates to the theme of Re-imagining democracy in terms of removing the rose coloured glasses and see ourselves as we are, so we are really able to work through our issues as a country.How does youth action in South Africa amplify democracy principles and practices in the country?
"With the youth connecting with each other and the world, using social media and the internet, it as become easy to talk to and understand a lot of people from different backgrounds, race groups, or even religions. This allows us as the youth to open up to unfamiliar beliefs and ideologies which creates social acceptance and tolerance, respect each others rights. The internet has made it hard to be indifferent, and it has became a great to voice injustices and fight for our rights. This makes everyone want to educate themselves about our country's democracy and motivate them to make up they own opinion about issues or even make moves to educate and help others voice themselves."- Fele
