Mark Mathabane

Mark Mathabane (born Johannes Mathabane, 18 October 1960) is a South African author, lecturer, and a former collegiate tennis player and college professor.

Early life in South Africa

Mathabane was born in Alexandra, South Africa, an area that is a part of Johannesburg, the capital of the province of Gauteng.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He was born to a life of poverty in the apartheid political setting of South Africa.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> His father was Jackson Mathabane,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> a Venda labourer who had an income of $10 a month.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Mathabane has also stated that his father struggled with alcohol and gambling, and was even abusive.<ref name="schools">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Magdalene Mathabane was Mathabane's mother.<ref name="answers">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She had been sold to Jackson Mathabane as a wife at the age of fifteen by her mother.<ref name="courage">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Jackson and Magdalene Mathabane had seven children, of whom Mark Mathabane was the eldest.<ref name="bio">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Life in the ghetto

Mathabane and his family lived in a one-square-mile ghetto which was also home to more than 200,000 other individuals.<ref name="bio"/> These living conditions lacked the modern commodities of paved roads, electricity,<ref name="schools"/> and even sewer systems.<ref name="suicide">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Food was scarce in this ghetto,<ref name="suicide"/> and the homes were nothing more than rough shacks.<ref name="schools"/> Mathabane never even had his first pair of shoes until he was fourteen years old.<ref name="suicide"/> Mathabane's early life in apartheid South Africa was devastating. He has stated that "living in apartheid was like living in Hell."<ref name="schools"/> At the young age of six, Mathabane joined his first gang.<ref name="suicide"/> Mathabane has stated that this lifestyle was horrific but that he did learn to cope in this environment.<ref name="suicide"/> However, he has stated that it was the elements of this environment which suppressed his spirit with which he was not able to cope.<ref name="suicide"/> This suppression of his spirit even drove Mathabane to the brink of suicide at the age of ten.<ref name="suicide"/>

Mathabane's mother

Mathabane has credited his illiterate mother with encouraging him to excel in education and to escape the confinements of apartheid South Africa.<ref name="courage"/> He has repeatedly mentioned her ability to always display love and encouragement even in her troublesome lifestyle.<ref name="courage"/> Mathabane's mother took a job to send him to school when he was seven.<ref name="answers"/> Many problems ensued from this endeavour since his father did not support the idea of obtaining an education.<ref name="answers"/>

First steps to escape from apartheid

Mathabane's grandmother worked as a gardener,<ref name="schools"/> and he attributes some of the first steps in his eventual escape from apartheid South Africa to an instance when he went to work with his grandmother.<ref name="schools"/> The family that his grandmother worked for gave him his first English book, which was Treasure Island.<ref name="schools"/> From this book, Mathabane began to dream of escaping the apartheid lifestyle.<ref name="schools"/> Additionally, the family gave him his first tennis racket, which he used to train himself tennis.<ref name="schools"/> Tennis would later become a key element in his eventual escape from apartheid South Africa.

Change of name

Mathabane randomly began to identify as Mark instead of Johannes when he first began playing tennis at Ellis Park and was introduced to his first white friend.<ref name="comingofage">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Life in America

Tennis and move to America

1972 Wimbledon tennis star Stan Smith and his wife, Marjory Gengler, were a key element in helping Mathabane obtain a tennis scholarship to the United States.<ref name="bio"/> Mathabane met Smith in 1977 at the South African Championship tennis tournament in Johannesburg.<ref name="answers"/> In 1978, with the aid of Smith, Mathabane moved to the United States and started attending Limestone College in South Carolina.<ref name="answers"/>

• [Abe 'Scara' Thomas] - Was like a father to Mark. He introduced him to tennis, gave him his first tennis racquet and mentored/coached him until he got the scholarship to the USA. He introduced Mark to different people who were prominent in the tennis circle. My dad is the "freckled faced colored man" referred to in the book. Abe Thomas loved Marvel comic books and collected them.

College life

Mathabane was faced with a whole new world in America. Even though he had escaped apartheid from South Africa, racial discrimination and prejudice still existed in America.<ref name="answers"/> Mathabane attended Limestone College in 1978 and then moved to Saint Louis University in 1979.<ref name="answers"/> Following that, Mathabane attended Quincy College in 1981 and then moved to Dowling College.<ref name="answers"/>

While attending Dowling College Mathabane became the first Black editor of the school magazine.<ref name="bio"/> He graduated Dowling College cum laude with a degree in Economics in 1983.<ref name="bio"/> Mathabane also pursued graduate level studies at Poynter Institute and the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.<ref name="bio"/>

Later on in his life, Mathabane received an honorary doctorate from Wittenberg University.<ref name="schools"/>

Early success

Mathabane wrote his autobiography, Kaffir Boy, in 1986.<ref name="answers"/> Kaffir Boy illustrated his prior life in apartheid South Africa, and became a national best-seller.<ref name="comingofage"/> After reading Kaffir Boy, Oprah Winfrey invited Mathabane to appear on her show.<ref name="answers"/> Mathabane went on to write several other literary works (see #Literary works).

Recent life

Mathabane had his first visit to the White House in 1993 after being invited by President Bill Clinton, who had read Kaffir Boy.<ref name="schools"/> From 1992–1993, Mathabane served as a White House Fellow under US President Bill Clinton, and assisted him with his educational policies.<ref name="schools"/> Mathabane has written articles for some print sources.<ref name="answers"/> He has also been a guest on several different TV and radio shows, and is also a well-known speaker.<ref name="bio"/> Mathabane and his wife, Gail (née Ernsberger), their three children (Bianca, b. 1989, Nathan b. 1991 and Stanley b. 1994), and his extended family lived in North Carolina. They relocated to Portland, Oregon in 2004, where he was formerly director of multicultural education at Catlin Gabel School.<ref name="comingofage"/>

Magdalene Scholarship Fund

In 2000, Mathabane established a non-profit organisation which he named after his mother Magdalene.<ref name="fund">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As stated on Mathabane's website, the fund's mission is to "create hope in an impoverished, bleak part of the world by providing scholarships, books, uniforms and school supplies for needy children attending Bovet Primary School in Alexandra Township, South Africa."<ref name="fund"/>

Literary works

Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Mathabane's first book was Kaffir Boy: the True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa, which was published in 1986,<ref name="answers"/> is an autobiography of his early life in apartheid South Africa.<ref name="books">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This book was listed as number one on the Washington Post's best-sellers list, and as number three on the New York Times best-seller list.<ref name="bio"/> Kaffir Boy has also won a Christopher Award, has been translated into several different languages, and is also used in many American classrooms.<ref name="bio"/>

Kaffir Boy in America: An Encounter with Apartheid

Mathabane's second book Kaffir Boy in America: An Encounter with Apartheid was also his second autobiography, and was published in 1989.<ref name="books"/> Kaffir Boy in America picked up where Kaffir Boy had left off and followed Mathabane's early life in America.<ref name="bio"/>

Love in Black and White: The Triumph of Love over Prejudice and Taboo

In 1992, Mathabane coauthored his third book, Love in Black and White: The Triumph of Love over Prejudice and Taboo, with his wife Gail.<ref name="bio"/> Love in Black and White examined Mark and Gail's interracial relationship, and the obstacles that they faced.<ref name="books"/>

African Women: Three Generations

African Women: Three Generations was Mathabane's fourth book, published in 1994.<ref name="bio"/> African Women tells the true story of the struggles of Mathabane's grandmother, mother, and sister in South Africa.<ref name="books"/>

Ubuntu

In 1999,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Mathabane wrote his first novel Ubuntu.<ref name="bio"/> Ubuntu is a fictional thriller of a human rights lawyer in post-apartheid South Africa.<ref name="books"/>

Miriam's Song

Miriam's Song was published in 2000,<ref name="bio"/> and was nominated for the Alan Paton Award.<ref name="books"/> Miriam's Song is a true account of the struggles of Mathabane's sister Miriam in apartheid South Africa.<ref name="books"/>

The Proud Liberal

Mathabane's latest work of fiction, The Proud Liberal, was published in 2010.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Proud Liberal is a modern-day thriller, which deals with controversial issues such as terrorism, racism, and intolerance in America.<ref name="books"/>

Bibliography

• The Proud Liberal: A Novel
• Ubuntu: A Novel about South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission
• Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa l Author Biography, Enotes
• The Lessons of Ubuntu: How an African Philosophy Can Inspire Racial Healing in America

See also

• Alexandra
• Apartheid
• Ghetto
• Johannesburg
• Kaffir (ethnic slur)

External links

• Template:Official website
• Excerpt: The Last Liberal by Mark Mathabane, published 1 October 2000 in The Multiracial Activist
• Excerpt: Love in Black and White by Mark and Gail Mathabane, published 1 October 2000 in The Multiracial Activist
• Dowling College