Representing traumatic pasts at the District Six Museum

Using this metaphoric framework as a starting point, I would like to focus on the characteristics of the District Six Museum which extend its work beyond being that of representation (of traumatic memory). Representation signifies in some ways distance and separation, a telling of a story depicted for others. The work of the Museum is more akin to what could broadly speaking be described as ‘engagement’. Although this is word is much over-used, it nonetheless indicates more closely an embodied practice which invites  personal insertion, empathy and emplacement. It includes a whole range of sense-making practices by those closest to the Museum’s story – the dispossessed ex-residents – who participate in the memorialisation practices of the Museum in both harmonious and dissonant ways. The architectural metaphor of this seminar is key to this approach, indicating a practice which is constructed and layered, fixed yet changeable. It speaks to a spectrum of activities related to the imperatives to develop as well as conserve – elements which are central to the Museum’s work in relation to the process of return and restitution. To signify the unfinished business of representation, the permanent exhibition is called Digging Deeper, a framework which allows for an always further uncovering of facts, meanings and perspectives

Representing traumatic pasts at the District Six Museum

Using this metaphoric framework as a starting point, I would like to focus on the characteristics of the District Six Museum which extend its work beyond being that of representation (of traumatic memory). Representation signifies in some ways distance and separation, a telling of a story depicted for others. The work of the Museum is more akin to what could broadly speaking be described as ‘engagement’. Although this is word is much over-used, it nonetheless indicates more closely an embodied practice which invites  personal insertion, empathy and emplacement. It includes a whole range of sense-making practices by those closest to the Museum’s story – the dispossessed ex-residents – who participate in the memorialisation practices of the Museum in both harmonious and dissonant ways. The architectural metaphor of this seminar is key to this approach, indicating a practice which is constructed and layered, fixed yet changeable. It speaks to a spectrum of activities related to the imperatives to develop as well as conserve – elements which are central to the Museum’s work in relation to the process of return and restitution. To signify the unfinished business of representation, the permanent exhibition is called Digging Deeper, a framework which allows for an always further uncovering of facts, meanings and perspectives

Temporal representation in narratives of forced removals : a narrative analysis of life story texts

In this thesis I have examined the life stories of three victims of forced removals. It is based on an understanding that there is much that we can learn from the lives of 'ordinary people' and that the oral medium is a rich source of understanding other aspects of society. Chapter 1 sketches the background of this study, and the socio-political context within which it has grown. In the main theory section (chapter 2), I provide a general overview of the tools of narrative-based discourse analysis which I have used for my work and lead into a consideration of theories of memory and time. I focus particularly on aspects of representation of time in narrative and explore the nature of traumatic memory in relation to this. In chapter four, my analysis draws attention to the different ways in which narrators make sense of the traumatic event in their lives. In fact, my analysis demonstrates that trauma shares fewer features with 'events' (as understood by Portelli, Ricouer and others), and seems to correspond more closely to an understanding of it as 'duration'. I conclude that the concept of linear time is not the organising principle in the narratives which I have examined, and that the forced removal has been a central occurrence around which the rest of life - and narrating about life is understood

Antibiotics and antiseptics for pressure ulcers

Background: Pressure ulcers, also known as bedsores, decubitus ulcers and pressure injuries, are localised areas of injury to the skin or the underlying tissue, or both. A range of treatments with antimicrobial properties, including impregnated dressings, are widely used in the treatment of pressure ulcers. A clear and current overview is required to facilitate decision making regarding use of antiseptic or antibiotic therapies in the treatment of pressure ulcers. This review is one of a suite of Cochrane reviews investigating the use of antiseptics and antibiotics in different types of wounds. It also forms part of a suite of reviews investigating the use of different types of dressings and topical treatments in the treatment of pressure ulcers. Objectives: To assess the effects of systemic and topical antibiotics, and topical antiseptics on the healing of infected and uninfected pressure ulcers being treated in any clinical setting. Search methods: In October 2015 we searched: the Cochrane Wounds Specialised Register, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library), Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid MEDLINE (In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations), Ovid EMBASE, and EBSCOCINAHL Plus.We also searched three clinical trials registries and the references of included studies and relevant systematic reviews. There were no restrictions based on language or date of publication or study setting. Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials which enrolled adults with pressure ulcers of stage II or above were included in the review. Data collection and analysis: Two review authors independently performed study selection, risk of bias assessment and data extraction. Main results: We included 12 trials (576 participants); 11 had two arms and one had three arms. All assessed topical agents, none looked at systemic antibiotics. The included trials assessed the following antimicrobial agents: povidone iodine, cadexomer iodine, gentian violet, lysozyme, silver dressings, honey, pine resin, polyhexanide, silver sulfadiazine, and nitrofurazone with ethoxy-diaminoacridine. Comparators included a range of other dressings and ointments without antimicrobial properties and alternative antimicrobials. Each comparison had only one trial, participant numbers were low and follow-up times short. The evidence varied from moderate to very low quality. Six trials reported the primary outcome of wound healing. All except one compared an antiseptic with a non-antimicrobial comparator. There was some moderate and low quality evidence that fewer ulcers may heal in the short term when treated with povidone iodine compared with non-antimicrobial alternatives (protease-modulating dressings (risk ratio (RR) 0.78, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.62 to 0.98) and hydrogel (RR 0.64, 95%CI 0.43 to 0.97)); and no clear difference between povidone iodine and a third non-antimicrobial treatment (hydrocolloid) (low quality evidence). Pine resin salve may heal more pressure ulcers than hydrocolloid (RR 2.83, 95% CI 1.14 to 7.05) (low quality evidence). There is no clear difference between cadexomer iodine and standard care, and between honey a combined antiseptic and antibiotic treatment (very low quality evidence). Six trials reported adverse events (primary safety outcome). Four reported no adverse events; there was very low quality evidence from one showing no clear evidence of a difference between cadexomer iodine and standard care; in one trial it was not clear whether data were appropriately reported. There was limited reporting of secondary outcomes. The five trials that reported change in wound size as a continuous outcome did not report any clear evidence favouring any particular antiseptic/anti-microbial treatments. For bacterial resistance, one trial found some evidence of more MRSA eradication in participants with ulcer treated with a polyhexanide dressing compared with a polyhexanideswab (RR 1.48, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.13); patients in the dressing group also reported less pain (MD −2.03, 95% CI −2.66 to −1.40). There was no clear evidence of a difference between interventions in infection resolution in three other comparisons. Evidence for secondary outcomes varied from moderate to very low quality; where no GRADE assessment was possible we identified substantial limitations which an assessment would have taken into account. Authors’ conclusions: The relative effects of systemic and topical antimicrobial treatments on pressure ulcers are not clear. Where differences in wound healing were found, these sometimes favoured the comparator treatment without antimicrobial properties. The trials are small, clinically heterogenous, generally of short duration, and at high or unclear risk of bias. The quality of the evidence ranges from moderate to very low; evidence on all comparisons was subject to some limitations

Rehabilitation of Cardiovascular Disorders and Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is present in more than 50% of patients referred to cardiac rehabilitation units. However, it has been under-recognized in patients after stroke and heart failure. Those with concurrent OSA have a worse clinical course. Early treatment of coexisting OSA with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) results in improved rehabilitation outcomes and quality of life. Possible mechanisms by which CPAP may improve recovery include decreased blood pressure fluctuations associated with apneas, and improved left ventricular function, cerebral blood flow, and oxygenation. Early screening and treatment of OSA should be integral components of patients entering cardiac rehabilitation units

Memory, heritage and the spaces between : a District Six Museum biography

This study affirms the value inherent in memory work, demonstrating that it can create empowering pathways through which to activate personal, community and by extension, national healing- the latter being a constant underlying theme of South Africa’s journey to deepen its rights-based democracy. It uses the example of District Six Museum (D6M) in Cape Town, South Africa, as a significant example of how a community has been empowered through the activation and valuing of its memory. The main thrust of my study focuses on the blockages experienced in navigating the regulatory procedures related to the declaration of District Six as a National Heritage Site (NHS). I present an underlying critique of the ways in which government departments generally conduct public engagements, referring specifically to the limited role that it has permitted community members to play in the shaping and protection of its own heritage in the context of District Six. This study raises questions about what recourse citizens have when they find that the implementation of the laws intended to bring redress and restitution, have the opposite effect. D6M’s origin in the context of a struggle for land is an important part of its identity and for this reason I have referred to the land claims process in the context of mobilising memory. District Six was an inner-city neighbourhood in Cape Town which was razed to the ground as part of legally sanctioned forced removals under apartheid. The Museum’s formation was prompted by the twin issues of land rights and memory of the land. The focus of its work in the new South Africa has been to support community members as they lodged claims for their loss of their right to land, to reclaim their connection to the land through memory, and to be acknowledged as major partners in the future development of District Six which includes memorialisation. Over time, D6M has ostensibly become the ‘face of the District Six story’ (Coombes, 2003: 118), and the trajectories of the community and the institution continue to be inextricably intertwined. In the new South Africa inaugurated in 1994, citizens are able to access land and heritage rights through the provisions of the Restitution of Land Rights Act No. 22 of 1994, (RLRA) and the National Heritage Resources Act No. 25 of 1999 (NHRA). The latter act makes allowance for sites deemed to be of national significance, to be declared NHS’s. The application to have District Six graded as a site of national significance ahead of its declaration was approved by the Council of the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) in 2004, affirming its national relevance. It is during this application period that D6M’s memory work came to engage more directly with the discourse of formal and authorised heritage. My approach has been interdisciplinary. I have drawn largely on theories and practices of memory work, museology, historiography, literature, discourse analysis, pedagogy and human rights. My argument for memory is not intended to be pitted against the discourse of heritage, but I do make the case for a richer conversation between these different modes. I also argue for deeper engagements with people as knowledge-bearers and makers – including those who are not formally trained disciplinary experts, but who are experts on their own lives and on the things that make or break communities. I make an argument for building national identity incrementally from the base, not as a predetermined narrative schematised from the top down. The colonial origins of the ‘museum’ construct cannot be ignored. It carries with it the burdened connotation of being object-focused spaces that present fixed narratives curated by experts. I demonstrate that despite the colonial residue associated with museums, critical engagement with its contemporary purpose can enable work within its frame in a decolonised way. The sector is under particular pressure during the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has to demonstrate relevance, at a time when resources from the public and private sectors need to be redirected towards saving lives and livelihoods. When I started this study, the pandemic was nowhere on the horizon. Having become a factor which affects every facet of life from here onwards, it has forced its way into my thesis. I have had to give it due consideration in terms of what the future might hold and how this study might contribute towards that future.Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2021.Mellon FoundationHistorical and Heritage StudiesPhDUnrestricte

Representing traumatic pasts at the District Six Museum

Using this metaphoric framework as a starting point, I would like to focus on the characteristics of the District Six Museum which extend its work beyond being that of representation (of traumatic memory). Representation signifies in some ways distance and separation, a telling of a story depicted for others. The work of the Museum is more akin to what could broadly speaking be described as ‘engagement’. Although this is word is much over-used, it nonetheless indicates more closely an embodied practice which invites  personal insertion, empathy and emplacement. It includes a whole range of sense-making practices by those closest to the Museum’s story – the dispossessed ex-residents – who participate in the memorialisation practices of the Museum in both harmonious and dissonant ways. The architectural metaphor of this seminar is key to this approach, indicating a practice which is constructed and layered, fixed yet changeable. It speaks to a spectrum of activities related to the imperatives to develop as well as conserve – elements which are central to the Museum’s work in relation to the process of return and restitution. To signify the unfinished business of representation, the permanent exhibition is called Digging Deeper, a framework which allows for an always further uncovering of facts, meanings and perspectives

Reshaping the Field from the Outside in: Aboriginal People and Student Journalists Working Together

This chapter examines field struggle in an education program called Aboriginal Community Engagement (ACE), established to foster collaboration between journalism students and people long marginalised by a field that valorises arm’s-length practice (Thomson et al. 2016). We put Bourdieu’s concept of field to work (Bourdieu and Wacquant 1992, p. 96) as conceptual, analytical and explanatory tool, and employ related concepts in Bourdieu’s theory of practice to identify and examine the power relations, positions and other field contexts, structures and dynamics enacted and made evident through ACE and the symbolic challenge it represented to orthodox journalism education. These concepts include capital, habitus, homology, orthodoxy and heterodoxy, misrecognition and symbolic violence (Bourdieu and Wacquant 1992; Swartz 1997)

Neutrality is not an option, museums don’t need left‐over statues

No abstract available.https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/21516952pm2021Historical and Heritage Studie