Present Day Chokeholds and how young people are fighting back
Unemployed graduates South Africa has a huge unemployment crisis, with over 45,6% of young people between the ages of 18-35 without formal employment, says the writer.
Image: Phill Magakoe AFP
Last month, we commemorated Human Rights Day by honouring the loss of life which occurred during the Sharpeville Massacre. This momentous day forces us to reckon with the sacrifices made by the many fallen soldiers who laid their lives down for the liberation of the oppressed.
Years later, the generation of today is drawing strength from the courageous acts made by these stalwarts and breaking free from present-day chokeholds that continue to constrict the economic emancipation and true freedom of young people.
The liberators from the apartheid era might have laid their lives on the ground for liberation for all, while their efforts and bravery were not in vain, young black people under the democratic dispensation continue to suffer new forms of oppression.
South Africa has a huge unemployment crisis, with over 45,6% of young people between the ages of 18-35 without formal employment.
In my community, the scourge of unemployment is widely visible. Young college graduates wander in the streets with hopes of securing jobs and making a living for themselves, still they are faced with an exclusionary system that continues to lock them out of economic opportunities.
Even when some continue to study further, many end up becoming victims of a life of addiction simply to remedy their inescapable conditions. Mass unemployment and the widening inequality gap have led to mental health decline and a loss of hope and dignity for many.
Unemployment: Pass laws are gone, but new systems suffocate us today! Youth unemployment sits at 40%, a stat that's not just numbers but locked doors for millions.
In my township, Tsakane in Ekurhuleni, young people with matric certificates, with college diplomas and University degrees, are collecting dust instead of paychecks.
This has led many young people to fall into depression as they no longer see the importance of obtaining higher education qualifications because of having no opportunities, even when they went to school and furthered their studies.
Nyaope addiction is turning brothers into ghosts and families into wrecks, with no clear solutions to assist their loved ones to break free from this addiction, says the writer.
Image: Supplied
Addiction:
Then there's Nyaope, this demon's hooks sink deeper every day, turning brothers into ghosts and families into wrecks, with no clear solutions to assist their loved ones to break free from this addiction. This has led to an innumerable number of our peers to end up thieving just so they can sell what they stole just so that they can feed their addiction.
Inequality: a child in Sandton's got a strong Wi-Fi connection and tutors, and they are more advantageous to make it well in education, when compared to a child in Alexander, who is just metres away from Sandton. These aren't just challenges, they're chokeholds, squeezing life out of our generation.
Leadership: We are not waiting to be rescued; we make it happen
Activators understand that present-day issues such as inequality and unemployment will not be remedied by an uncaring government that has failed to prioritise them; instead, the onus is on them to band together to rise above these chokeholds.
Last week, I came across a youth group from Duduza who turned a social media group into a job-sharing board that offers services to revamp CVs. While this action may seem small, it is one of the many ways in which young people are making opportunities widely accessible for those without access.
Waiting for something to miraculously happen for you is not an option, not in 2025. Action is the solution right now, and it's in your hands. Young people have to understand that they have ample power at their disposal and nothing will be handed to them on a silver platter until they get up and adopt a can-do attitude.
The theme of the South African Rugby national team (the Springboks) was 'Stronger together,' we can learn from this, the Springboks as a team is comprised of different players who play in different positions and each of them contributes effectively in the positions they are placed in on their line-up, no player has single-handedly made them win the World cup tournament, they played as a team, not as individuals, and that's what made the Springboks be.
This demonstrates that it takes a team to come up with strong and practical solutions. Link up! It could be with like-minded youth entities or individuals, and as a collective or as a network, you will thrive, you will identify problems, and together you can take steps to find solutions and tackle the socio-economic challenges you've identified.
Our efforts as young people shouldn't end on Human Rights Day; they should occur daily.
Image: Leon Muller / Independent Newspapers Archives
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