Inspiring British youth with Ginn and Letlapa Mphahlele's post-apartheid message
The Beyond Forgiving UK Tour, organised by Initiatives of Change in partnership with The Forgiveness Project and the Wilderness Foundation, has arranged for Ginn and Letlapa to visit youth community projects and alternative schools in London and Belfast.
This will be the first time that Ginn and Letlapa have visited the UK together since the film was made. The hope is that, in combining public screenings with the chance to hear their powerful story of reconciliation, they will inspire young people and others to reflect on how to ‘build bridges’ in personal lives and across community divides.
Jo Roberts, CEO of The Wilderness Foundation, has long experience of working with youth at risk and has played a key role in delivering the Sustainable Peace Network in Northern Ireland.
She comments on how Ginn and Letlapa’s story can help people gain perspective and a deeper human understanding when experiencing pain and conflict.
‘In a world often filled with the news of conflict and political upheaval – the humanity and experience of ordinary people in the middle of it can often be overlooked. Beyond Forgiving takes us into the realm of the human heart and the possibility to explore what humans are truly capable of in terms of moving away from blame, bitterness and aggression to empathy, forgiveness and new perspectives of our own personal tragedies. Beyond Forgiving is a story of hope for the future – in a world where peace and common humanity can actually become a reality. — Jo Roberts, CEO, The Wilderness Foundation.
London’s East End: History doesn’t define destiny - giving young people the chance to determine a different future
Ginn and Letlapa will visit London’s East End (20 May), the home of the LifeLine Institute which is managed by LifeLine Projects. The LifeLine Institute was commissioned to run as an Alternative School (2005) to ‘reconnect’ young people who have been marginalised as 'the most disengaged in the Borough' with little or no positive experience in mainstream education. The day has been facilitated by hosting partner FaithAction.
Daniel Singleton, National Executive Director of FaithAction, a former history teacher who works with the Institute, will lead a session on forgiveness giving students the opportunity to ask Ginn and Letlapa questions about their experience in South Africa.
Daniel comments: ‘The radical way Mandela responded to the wrongs that were done to him is his most powerful legacy … The Beyond Forgiving story exemplifies the late Mandela’s message of forgiveness and reflects an underlying message that LifeLine Institute aims to instil in students that history doesn’t define destiny. LifeLine runs an award-winning Vision, Identity, Purpose (VIP) mentoring programme driven by the desire to give young people a second chance. Young people at the Institute discover that as they put past difficulties behind them they can determine a different future'. - Daniel Singleton, National Executive Director, FaithAction
LifeLine Projects, that run the Institute for the borough, also connects with Lifeline Nehemiah Projects (LNP) (a programme that supports the rehabilitation of young people from Sierra Leone), Peaced Together (a craft based project running in Barking and Dagenham that uses art and craft to help people rebuild themselves) and Community Connect (a programme of activities for the benefit of the local community) which will also form part of the London day.
FaithAction also acts as the Secretariat for the APPG (All Party Parliamentary Group) on Faith and Society. FaithAction have facilitated a meeting for Ginn and Letlapa to meet with Parliamentarians at the House of Commons (21 May), hosted by Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP, Chair of the APPG on Faith and Society, Vice Chair for Faith for the Labour party and MP for East Ham.
Can the young people in Northern Ireland live in peace?
In Belfast, young people from Hazelwood Integrated College and Start360 (formerly Opportunity Youth) will have the chance to voice their opinion around healing, reconciliation and history when they meet with Ginn and Letlapa.
The Belfast visit has been facilitated by The Wilderness Foundation and INCORE (International Conflict Research Institute) long-term partners in conflict resolution and leadership development in Northern Ireland.
Hazelwood Integrated College is one of the first interfaith schools, symbolically located in the middle of the peace line. As Kathleen Gormley, Principal of the college observes: ‘The visible sign of reconciliation is in our school crest and the journey which has been made by Hazelwood is a lesson to anyone in leadership to have the vision and stick to it and not bow down under a weight of negativity.’ — Kathleen Gormley, Principal
Start360 (Opportunity Youth) is a well-known and popular regional charity that provides various services to young people including peace building and justice programmes. Anne-Marie McClure MBE, a former nurse, helped set up the organization in 1993, which aims to address the complex and diverse needs of marginalised, vulnerable young people in Northern Ireland. Their work involves acting as mentors for young people in custody, also working with adult prisoners who face drug or alcohol addiction amongst their many services. “Our aim is to make a real difference to young people’s lives and to build a safer community in Northern Ireland.”
Imad Karam, Beyond Forgiving’s director, observes: ‘Whilst Ginn and Letlapa have both been victims in their own right and lived through the horror of injustice, violence and personal loss, the documentary’s underlying message is that we don’t have to be at war with each other or to have killed to forgive each other.’
INCORE Public Screening: Accounts of the Conflict
The Beyond Forgiving tour ends with a public screening in central Belfast (30 May) at 174 Trust (a new Healing and Reconciliation Centre). The Belfast public screening is in association with Professor Brandon Hamber of INCORE as part of ‘The Accounts of the Conflict’ project based at the University of Ulster.
The ‘Accounts of the Conflict’ project digitally collects stories that contribute to the ideals expressed in the Victims and Survivors Forum.
Professor Brandon Hamber, Director of INCORE, comments: ‘South Africa, as a relatively new democracy, has come a long way. But we still have work to do, not only in South Africa but globally where deep political divisions still exist in many countries. Ginn and Letlapa’s story shows that it is possible to move away from hatred and vengeance towards healing and reconciliation. It is hoped that their message of forgiveness and reconciliation will inspire young people, communities and others who experience conflict. The Beyond Forgiving story demonstrates that it is possible to “build bridges’’ and work towards socio-equality and peace through unity.’
Film Director, Imad Karam concludes: ‘With this year symbolising two decades since South Africa’s first democratic elections, we very much hope that Ginn and Letlapa’s experience of moving from ‘victimhood to survivor’ will serve as a poignant modern-day parable of how it is possible to go beyond forgiving to break the cycle of vengeance and help others.’
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