A group of teenagers from Toxteth travelled to South Africa, where they met members of Nelson Mandela's family, after completing an intensive media training course. The trip, organised through a partnership between film and audio production company Culture City and Toxteth-based charity Mandela8, saw the young people create their own film about Mandela's fight against apartheid.
Liverpool's connection with Nelson Mandela dates back decades, with grassroots activism and campaigns for his release emerging in Toxteth during the 1980s while Mandela was imprisoned. A month after he became South African President in 1994, Mandela met the Liverpool FC team ahead of a fixture in Johannesburg, and later that year he was officially awarded Freedom of the City in Liverpool.
Training and the trip to South Africa
Mandela8 was founded in 2013 following Mandela's death, aiming to continue the leader's legacy in Liverpool through initiatives including creating a permanent memorial in Princes Park, and hosting community initiatives and exhibitions.
The latest partnership saw Culture City take on a group of teenagers from Mandela8's Young Media Programme, training them in an intensive 10-week course on lighting, camera work and editing. After completing the course with Culture City founder Joe Campbell last year, the Toxteth students got the chance to put their skills to the test in South Africa by making their own film.
Meeting Mandela's family
Sonia Bassey, chair of Mandela8, described the moment the students met Dr Maki Mandela, Nelson's daughter, and Tukwini Mandela, Nelson's granddaughter. "I was there with them when they met Dr Maki Mandela and Tukwini Mandela. They actually hosted them at their home, and they went for a meal with them as well," she said.
Bassey added: "I think just seeing young people get those opportunities is just so inspiring. And it's jaw-dropping really when you think that they would never have dreamt in their wildest dreams that that was going to happen. Seeing that happen and seeing their faces and the adult conversations they were having with Mandela's family was just amazing."
Connecting past and present struggles
Bassey said the experience gave the teenagers a connection between South Africa and some of the struggles there, and some of the experiences of some of their elders in Liverpool. She noted that in the current climate, it shows them that, as much as these things are historical, they are also happening in the present day.
Reflecting on those who fought racism in Liverpool in years gone by, Bassey said: "I think they'd be immensely proud that the lessons and struggles that they fought for are now being picked up by [younger generations]. It's like passing on the baton. The baton's being passed from generation to generation, and they're still doing the work that they were doing all them years ago." She added: "I think for those ancestors that aren't here anymore, I'd probably say the same thing I always say; we stand on the shoulders of giants."
Mandela8 - Journey to South Africa will be screened at Museum of Liverpool Theatre on Wednesday, December 2.
