International Relations Chair spreads NBLSA's reach to South Africa

South Africa, August 2006

This August, I traveled to South Africa to work on land reform at the Legal Resources Centre, South Africa’s largest public interest employer. It was an awesome experience! After researching land reform issues in law school, I was able to see firsthand how South Africa is dealing with land redistribution after apartheid. The case that I worked on involved the government’s obligation to develop the land before placing families back onto property that lacks basic amenities such as plumbing, sanitation, and electricity.

Additionally, while in South Africa, I was able to meet with students from the Black Law Students Council at the University of Cape Town to see whether we would be able to start a chapter of the International Law Student Division there. I met with four students at the University of Cape Town campus. We spoke about some of the problems that they have faced after apartheid and the programs they have designed to address their needs as black law students. One of the major problems that the students identified is that while South African laws have changed in the past decade, the professors who educate students about South African history and legal perspectives remain the same. As a result, black students still lack representation and access to professional opportunities.

I was very encouraged to learn, however, that all of the Black Law Students Council’s programs are very similar to NBLSA’s programs. For instance, the chapter has a Career Development Portfolio, a Community Service Portfolio that works with a local township elementary school, a Prison Reform Portfolio, and a Transformation Portfolio that is dedicated to ensuring that black law students are represented in student government. During my trip, I also had lunch with the President of the Black Law Students Council. We spoke about ways that NBLSA would be able to support students at the University of Cape Town. I am pleased to share that we will be starting a chapter of the International Law Student Division by the end of October. The chapter will consist of approximately 100 students.

The best part of my trip was my tour of Soweto, or the “South West Township.” Soweto is home to over 3.5 million people and is considered the largest black city in Africa. If you ever go to South Africa, you must go to Soweto! As I toured the interactive Apartheid Museum, visited Nelson Mandela’s home, and stopped at the Hector Pieterson Museum, I was able to better understand the rich and turbulent history that brought me to South Africa in the first place. The most inspiring part of the trip was listening to accounts of the 1976 Soweto Riots and seeing the powerful impact that student-led movements can have in changing a society and shaping its history.

Before leaving South Africa, I had the opportunity to meet with the programming staff at the Nelson Mandela Foundation. There, we spoke about some of the programs that they have designed to address HIV/AIDS and improve rural education in South Africa. I also spoke with the Foundation staff about sponsorship of NBLSA’s Nelson Mandela Scholarships where NBLSA awards scholarships of $1,000 each to students for an essay on a socially relevant problem in Africa. This year’s problem concerns race-based genocide in Sudan, one of my initiatives under International Relations.

I am pleased to share my experiences with the Western Region and thank Jamila Taylor, your Regional Chair, for the opportunity. If you have any questions regarding my trip or ways to work with the International Law Division members in South Africa or Nigeria, please email me at international@nblsa.org. Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Pratima Narayan

National Black Law Students Association,

International Relations Chair

National Director of the International Law Students Division