The Why Democracy House

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56908159455563686732011-07-28T20:53:38.910+02:00The Why Democracy HouseExploring democracy from a wired house in Cape Town, South Africa.Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.comBlogger231100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-41647319611571953892007-10-11T11:54:00.000+02:002007-10-11T12:03:01.747+02:00DH getting emptier, quieter and colder

The week I arrived at the Democracy House there was plenty of movement, working and talking.But early yesterday morning the house got emptier, quieter and colder. Amy, our super-polite, beloved friend is now in Rwanda, where she is going to spend a week and then go back home. Amy was the first of our group (the second DH crew) to leave the house.In spite of our hectic weeks of work and due to

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-65108798311695848302007-10-10T14:36:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:00.358+02:00Housemates Do Hermanus

On the eve of the Why Democracy? broadcasts, the Democracy Housemates decided to escape the madness of deadlines, broadcast schedules and news posts to get some much needed R&R. Our trip took us to the world famous whale-watching town of Hermanus which is along South-Western Cape coast. Timed perfectly into our busy schedule, the trip was officially the last “excursion” we would have all the

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-37012913022221387422007-10-08T13:58:00.000+02:002007-10-08T14:07:08.259+02:00Who Would You Vote for as President of the World?

Since our homepage launched in August, we have had open nominations for candidates that could possibly be a good president of the world.We closed the nominations in late September and today we opened the Poling Station. 40 people were nominated. We in the house then held internal elections, for the 15 best candidates. We each had to elect 5 people, and give the number points from 1 to 5. So that

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-53420661339284060752007-10-02T15:27:00.001+02:002008-12-11T00:33:02.301+02:00Wining, Dining and watching a bear get married on the beach

Yes, you read right: We did watch a bear get married to man in a bridal gown on Clifton beach. But more of that later.Last Saturday, a few of us from the Democracy House (and a couple of groupies) ventured in the winelands for a day of fun, sun and good wine. Traditionally, our day started two hours after the planned departure time but nevertheless progressed into quite an awesome day. First on

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-38626983849781874202007-10-02T12:01:00.000+02:002007-10-02T12:09:11.654+02:00Sunday, Sep. 30th2007

Tamara is our close friend in the Democracy House, and her daughter Efredah is, no doubt, everybody’s sweetheart!Tragically, Tamara’s husband Irvin died of AIDS on Sept. 19, 2007.We went to attend Irvin’s funeral on Sunday morning, in Crossroads, Nyanga. This is a place very different from downtown Cape Town, and to me much more like Africa. The residents are all black people -- women wearing in

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-65453381940051865852007-10-02T10:42:00.000+02:002007-10-02T12:33:37.195+02:00Conversations with Alice - or in Denial?

Why? Why? Why do they do this?This is the question I had when I awoke this morning. Notably it was not "Why Democracy?" nor "Why the hell am I thinking about writing this blog post before I am officially awake and in the line of duty, equipped with caffeine running through my veins to make up for less than 5 hours sleep -- again.".Words and pictures are stuck in my head: Why do these people stand

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-60769525106743830632007-10-02T01:38:00.000+02:002007-10-02T12:10:38.826+02:00Could it happen without democracy? - Charlotte's trip to New York

Last week I went to New York and as usual I didn’t get to see the Statue of Liberty or go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. However, I did get to go to Columbia University only three days before Mahmoud Ahmedinejad came to speak to the faculty and students.I was having coffee with my friend Pablo, when a friend of his, Aries, came by. Aries is the spokesperson is the Queer Alliance at Columbia,

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-49769315883911199372007-09-25T09:29:00.000+02:002007-09-25T10:02:49.358+02:00Monday – the official braaing day in South-Africa: Vote Amy as the president of the world!

While most South Africans spent this monday home braaing, we democrats are glad to return to our computers getting ready for the big event approaching.Since the Internet didn´t work in the house we invaded the Steps office and sat safely inside tapping our computers while the strong wind shook the trees outside.This conversation begin when Amy kicked my leg under the table:”Amy you´re kicking me”

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-73960183574671791992007-09-20T20:12:00.000+02:002007-09-20T20:13:28.515+02:00Democratic sneakers

I'm Brazilian and I speak Portuguese so I took a look at the dictionary to check the meaning for the word "democracy". de·moc·ra·cy –noun, plural -cies. 1. government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system 2. a state having such a form of government. 3.

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-13670924779221920862007-09-12T11:32:00.000+02:002007-09-25T10:12:47.499+02:00Interview with Wei Jun Chen, Director of "Please Vote For Me"

Sep.10th.2007, MondayFinally, I’ve got the chance to interview Wei Jun Chen, the Chinese director of "Please Vote for Me".We are both excited to know that there is another Chinese involved in this international project, and it feels so great to discuss democracy in Chinese on the phone.Siyi (S): “Have the kids and their families already watched the film?”WeiJun (W): “Chen chen (the little

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-78164903309369857582007-09-11T19:08:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:03.257+02:00Sunday trip to Muizenberg beach

epicures: Amy, Charlotte, Irini ”lots of eating”surfers: John, Erick, Salla ”lots of paddling”I have never felt more cool than when I was struggling with my surfboard towards the huge waves (in my opinion), crashing through them and hearing the fading voice of the teacher shouting ”keep paddling, keep paddling, paddle, paddle”. After countless rotations and falls, each time afraid of the board

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-1982833500843815262007-09-05T20:24:00.000+02:002007-09-05T20:45:18.952+02:00Dinner at Democracy House 05-09-07

Cultural contrasts smoothed out through culinary camaraderie.... Cook(s): Siyi, SallaDinner summary: Siyi prepared soup/porridge concoction involving squash (which South Africans refer to as pumpkin) and brown rice. A fairly benign combination, but I was a bit leery of it being something utterly made up and consequently unsettling. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised -- it was very porridge-y,

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-1504966174369064142007-08-31T07:47:00.000+02:002007-09-04T15:51:41.014+02:00Notes from Mamata

On the last weekend of August, Irini and I had the fortune of going with Tamara, who runs the house we're all living in, to her home village in the Eastern Cape.Mamata is 15+ hours away by bus, and Tamara assured us we would be the only white people in the village, and the only ones to have visited in a long time. She did not lie. We were definitely a novelty. More than that. Some people were

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-30095191196741514152007-08-27T14:10:00.000+02:002007-08-27T16:21:09.579+02:00

It’s seven o’clock in the evening on a Thursday and I am skimming through a facilitator’s manual for STEPS for the future. STEPS for the future is a collection of 35 documentary films about HIV/Aids in sub-Saharan Africa. It is the first project STEPS International ever did. Why Democracy? is the second. In the introduction it says::STEP stands for Social Transformation and Empowerment Project.In

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-10884873414156210242007-08-21T18:09:00.000+02:002007-08-22T19:04:26.638+02:00Amy's account of the weekend

We, The Why Democracy? crew, made a little trip this weekend and visited Kommetjie, a small beach town. Our landlord Chris has a house in there and let us have a weekend close the beach. Here is our story ...FridaySo we called a short Friday, after having a decent lunch from the New Yorker Deli at Greenpoint. We got lots of delicious Bagels and ate them at the terrace of the Why Democracy? House

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-60814260042132852902007-08-15T01:20:00.002+02:002007-08-15T01:22:51.514+02:00

After 7 pm on a Tuesday: I'm sitting at the dining room table of Democracy House. I went for a long run with Chris, who owns this place, late this afternoon and in doing so got a bit more acquainted with the city. I clearly haven't seen that much since getting here a week ago, which is at least a testament to the amount of work we've been doing.The work: We've spent a lot of the last few days

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-37766357809306851302007-07-28T23:08:00.001+02:002007-07-28T23:10:16.774+02:00What is democracy?

I have been tempted to write a blog concerning democracy for some time, but every time I get close, I stop and question how to define it, how I choose to see it practiced and whether I even believe in the concept. I am finally taking the plunge and right now with a week to go till the end of my stay in Cape Town, I cannot think of a better time. I cannot define democracy solely by examining the

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-70530051218369309932007-07-24T11:31:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:03.636+02:00What we've been up to!

So, this past weekend was a whirlwind of activity. Yukta, Irini, and I all climbed Lion's Head on Friday afternoon. We went up just before sunset and descended soon after, and the view was absolutely beautiful!On Saturday, we had a house warming party of sorts and invited the wonderful Steps crew and some of the new friends we've made while in Cape Town. The party was a resounding success, in

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-57098420929039512942007-07-21T19:49:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:04.423+02:00We met Pelé!!

Well, this is the first time I write a blog. But there's a good reason, and I guess I will tell this story over and over again to my friends back home…Well, short story long…Last week we found out that there was a football match being held in Cape Town to celebrate Nelson Mandela's 89th birthday. Africa was playing rest of the world with players such as Samuel Et'o, Ruud Gullit, George Weah, Ivan

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-4217399778383545712007-07-12T11:26:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:05.039+02:00re: new house member

Hi everyone!I am the newest (human) addition to the Democracy House. I arrived from Lagos, Nigeria on Monday morning and it has been a whirlwind three days (or maybe it's more...I've lost count) I have been getting up to speed on the goings on in the house, spending time with the house mates, and in general, spending an extraordinary amount of time on my computer.Since I have been here, we have

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-55694943216623228582007-07-06T17:44:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:06.852+02:00Our new addition

Well the newest member so far to the DH team is our new/ old VW beetle. It is a rented car to help us get from point A to point B as long as Point B is only a short distance from Point A. The rastas who have been working deconstructing/ reconstructing the wall around our house have given it a name in Xhosa, which means slow insect but is far from being onomatopoeia. Varun is now the designated

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-50504423244738308862007-07-06T03:54:00.001+02:002007-07-06T03:56:43.741+02:00POEM

WHY DEMOCRACY?I don’t have a mother,I don’t have a fatherNeither a sister nor a brotherWhat about a family?That is for a thinker to thinkA family and fairytale,Is there a difference to me?ButWhy Democracy?A sinner, I’m notWrong, I do notWhat wrong have I done to you?Why are you taking my parents, family and friendsAway from me?My childhood, I `ve lostI’ve missed an opportunity to studyKodwaWhy

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690815945556368673.post-76370565469373478782007-07-06T02:54:00.000+02:002008-12-11T00:33:07.165+02:00The wall

The week we moved in to the house, the actual physical Democracy House, workers started tearing down the wall surrounding the house. Most houses in Cape Town have walls of the kind that keep intruders out and inhabitants safe.Like many other walls in this area, this wall was built of red bricks covered with cream coloured plaster. A group of workers from a Rastafarian township are executing the

Why Democracy Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506664891537110274noreply@blogger.com1