Burning to consume?<i>Izikhothane</i>in Daveyton as aspirational consumers

Mnisi, Jabulani G.

doi:10.1080/02500167.2015.1093322

Cited by 17 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Boys explained that young people who were simply bystanders could inadvertently be drawn into these competitive and intrinsically violent interactions. One popular gang in the neighbourhood, they claimed, was the ‘ Izikhothane’, modelled on a notorious youth sub-culture that originated in Soweto in the early 2000s [ 35 ]. Izikhothane members would wear luxury branded clothes and nihilistically flaunt wealth they did not have.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From fear to resilience: adolescents’ experiences of violence in inner-city Johannesburg, South Africa

et al. 2017

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BackgroundFor adolescents growing up in poor urban South African settings, violence is often a part of daily life and has lasting effects on physical and mental health outcomes in adulthood. We conducted a qualitative study to document and understand the forms of interpersonal violence experienced by adolescents living in Hillbrow, Johannesburg. In this article, we explore how violence is experienced differently by adolescent boys and girls, how they conceptualise ‘dangerous’ and ‘safe’ spaces in their neighbourhood and what gaps exist in available services for youth in Hillbrow.MethodsThe article draws on data collected in the formative phase of the ‘Wellbeing of Adolescents in Vulnerable Environments’ (WAVE) Study of challenges faced by adolescents (15–19 years) growing up in impoverished parts of five cities. This article reports on analysis using only data from the Johannesburg site. Using both purposive and snowball sampling to select participants, we conducted in-depth interviews (n = 20) and community mapping exercises with female (n = 19) and male (n = 20) adolescents living in Hillbrow, as well as key informant interviews with representatives of residential shelters, CBOs, and NGOs working with youth (n = 17). Transcripts were coded manually and analysed using an inductive thematic analysis approach.ResultsBoth girls and boys reported high exposure to witnessing violence and crime. For girls, the threat of sexual harassment and violence was pervasive, while boys feared local gangs, the threat of physical violence, and being drawn into substance-abuse. Home was largely a safe haven for boys, whereas for girls it was often a space of sexual violence, abuse and neglect. Some adolescents developed coping mechanisms, such as actively seeking out community theatres, churches and other places of sanctuary from violence. Community-based services and shelters that support adolescents reported a lack of resources, overall instability and difficulties networking effectively.ConclusionsAdolescents in Hillbrow commonly witnessed and had direct experience of many forms of violence in their environment, and these experiences differed markedly by gender. Interventions that build young peoples’ social capital and resilience are essential for reducing violence-related trauma and long-term health and social consequences for adolescents in this community.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From fear to resilience: adolescents’ experiences of violence in inner-city Johannesburg, South Africa

et al. 2017

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“…Through history, people have destroyed both objects and living creatures as offerings to gods, spirits or other powers. A contemporary but secular example of ritualized destruction of value can be seen in some of the practices of the Izikhothane in South Africa which involve the ritualized destruction of high-priced commercial goods (Mnisi, 2015). The word ‘Izikhothane’ is taken from the isiZulu word ‘ ukukhothana ’, loosely translated as ‘those who lick’ (p. 341).…”

Section: Basic Acts Of Destructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Semiotics of destruction: traces on the environment

Björkvall

Archer

2021

Visual Communication

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Research in fields such as multimodality and semiotics has focused on creation of value in different forms: aesthetic, economic and symbolic. However, the destruction of value has attracted much less attention. The aim of this article is to identify social, semiotic and ideological functions of acts of destruction based on an analysis of the traces these acts leave on the urban environment. Five overarching acts of destruction are discussed, but the authors’ main focus is on what they call transformation-driven and social presence-driven destruction, with two examples from Sweden and South Africa. The article discusses sanctioned destructive acts that are largely in compliance with dominating semiotic regimes at a certain time and place, as well as disruptive actions that challenge or even disobey those regimes. The analysis shows how a distinction between sanctioned and disruptive is in no way clear and often depends on complex power distributions between semiotic regimes at a given time and place. In fact, traces in the physical environment that may point to or index highly destructive acts can, in relation to other semiotic regimes, be regarded as creative and constructive. The authors argue that the semiotic processes of destruction and the traces they leave deserve more attention from research in the fields of multimodality and semiotics.

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