In 2005 at the International Society of Theoretical Psychology (ISTP) meeting in Cape Town (hosted by faculty of the University of South Africa Psychology) I had my first encounter not only with South Africa but with South African Psychology. This was quickly followed by attending the International Critical Psychology Conference, hosted by the University of Kwazulu-Natal department of Psychology in Durban. The two associations tend to overlap to some degree in membership and in supporting critical and social-historical inquiries into psychology's sociopolitical effects. With the exception of participating in a similarly co-occurance of these associations in Sidney in 1999, this was my only direct encounter with the ideas of psychologists outside of North America and Great Britain. It was my association with Critical Psychology and Psychologists for Social Responsibility that led me to go to Sydney and now Cape Town and Durban, and so I was anticipating exchanges and relationships with relatively like-minded psychologists who, due to their investment in social justice, exist at the margins of their own national psychological associations.

What I came away with were enduring reverberations caused by the potency of this conjunction of a minority of international leftist psychologists with South Africa in only its tenth year of democracy. I was not interested in psychology at the time of my own country's racial transformation, the civil rights movement; it is only in my role as teacher of US psychology's historical and social contexts that I relate to that time, which included uncovering psychology's contributions to maintaining a racist sociopolitical system along with its role in undermining segregation. Here I found a group of psychologists actively involved in (at minimum): (1) reorienting psychology as a discipline toward a reparation of the wrongs it had perpetrated upon its non-white citizens; (2) recreating psychology as morally bound to promote the health and well-being of those who have been wronged under society's and psychology's dividing practices; and (3) promoting the cultural lives of the oppressed in the service a multivocal, non-hegemonic psychology for South Africans. There could not be a more auspicious time and place for the emergence of transformative psychological theories and practices with implications across the globe.

In South Africa, the history of psychology is quite similar to our own in the US, primarily because we share a colonial history that included slavery of black Africans, which was followed by a system legal segregation of blacks and whites promoted by one segment of the citizenry who saw their way of life threatened by racial equality. Our involvement in eugenics ideology and practices connected with South Africa's steps toward Apartheid in ways that left a lasting imprint on the latter's development of psychology. The eugenics movement was most successful as a combined science-ideology in the US, Great Britain, Germany, and South Africa; intelligence testing was used in research to support a racist agenda in all contexts. That the majority of psychologists wrapped themselves in scientistic neutrality in the face of Apartheid's enormous crimes against humanity is does not make them unique in the profession. It was July 2008 when at last APA resolved that, "[a]ny direct or indirect participation in any act of torture or other forms of cruel, degrading or inhuman treatment or punishment by psychologists is strictly prohibited". The integration of ethnic, racial and other social minorties into APA has made progress since 1970 and still has much to accomplish, though more now in the area of leadership at the institutional and national levels. Just in time, perhaps, for when the US white population is no longer the majority racial group.

It is here, of course, at the question of size of representation where South African psychology, as a 'first world' hegemonic institution, distinguishes itself from the rest. In the US there are now explicit efforts to have the faculty and student population reflect the diversity of our national census (not taking into account the 'feminization' of psychology and other practitioner disciplines). This affirmative action goal, while evidently still difficult for us to achieve, still reserves 69% room for caucasions, 12% blacks, 12.6 hispanics, 3.6% asians, and almost 1% native americans. In South Africa's case, a representative proportion of white psychologists would be 9.1 %, black 79.6%, colored 8.9% and indian/asian 2.5%. The enormity of the change for representation in South African psychology is so overwhelming that it serves to palpably implicate an outsider like me into this tragedy of colonial and postcolonial devastation on indiginous Africans.

South African psychology has an unfortunate historical association with the orgins of Apartheid. Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd's was a graduate student and later a professor of psychology at the africaner University of Stellenbosch. Verwoerd later became a politician and was responsible for establishing Apartheid in 1959. With the exception of a small number of courageous psychologists, South African psychology did not weigh in against the apartheid regime. There were clearly significant risks involved in protesting apartheid or studying its destructive psychological (among other) effects upon non-white africans, and many emigrated to be free of apartheid's barriers to the profession or from prosecution for exposing its human rights violations. Those who remained and continued to work against apartheid are models for us all; ashamedly, I cannot imagine myself ever having their courage.

At this moment in history, at the beginning of an african South Africa, when small groups of psychologists across the world collaborate with communities and other professions in efforts to change themulti-determined conditions of poverty and oppression, what is possible? Does the enormity of the reparative change distract or defeat us? What services can western, white, critical psychologists contribute as minority players in the development of an african psychology? In what cases do we become a hindrance?

It has become clear to me that I want to make whatever contributions I can to the success of South Africa's democracy and to easing the suffering of those citizens who suffer most; my skills as a critical and clinical psychologist make up the bulk of what I can contribute. My first steps have been guided by humility, curiosity, and gratitude; I have marred these steps at other times with ungratefulness, self-absorbtion, passivity, and fear. When all of me shows up for this challenge, I cannot forget to attend to and repair unintended negative outcomes of my actions in this effort.

My Neighborhood in Turffontein

I am staying on the 2nd floor of Cotlands House, which serves as housing for volunteers (some of whom stay for a full year between high school and university) and for 10 children who, thanks to ARVT, have survived into the ripe old ages of 10-13. I have to unlock two iron gates to climb the stairs to the apartment I share with a Scottish volunteer, Louise, who is heading for home in 4 days after being here a year. I was not provided with a key to the outer gate, and so had to ask one of the kind women who look after the kids downstairs to let me in and out.

This neighborhood at one time was relatively affluent, or at least middle class, but the only evidence of better times is the size and structural qualities of the houses, and the fine old trees that line the streets. Turffontein is now the 2nd most dangerous neighborhood in Johannesburg and few people can be seen on the streets after dark. A few times a week, I walk to the market (SPAR) for supplies like bottled water, bread, and small meal supplies.

The walk to the SPAR begins on our street, Ferreira (named after a gold speculator who discovered gold on the Turrfontein farm back in the 1870s) to the large street at the end of the block. I have wanted to photograph this area, but have been afraid of being robbed. I did snatch a few pictures slyly the other day. The one below is taken from our entry gate, and shows some men working on a car on the left.At the corner, there’s an abandoned building on the right, which often has shattered glass scattered on the ground and sidewalk. There is a wide stretch of what would be grass between the spotty sidewalk and the street; it’s got some patches of ‘grass’, and consists of the red-orange dirt that is everywhere. Across the street, there is a covered area, like a craft fair booth, where one or two men sell haircuts and shaves. I think this was here last year, without the cover. There’s an open doorway nearby the barber that leads into a small room packed with fruit and vegetables; one of the little Spazas that can be found on almost every block (There’s also one along the walk to Cotlands from my apartment, but it’s bigger and in the evenings sells things through an iron grating. An even larger market is further down the road, situated on a classy corner spot). As I walk to the SPAR, I pass many other pedestrians and am unsure whether to smile or to avoid eye contact; I do a little of both. The pharmacy is in the block before the main intersection and the street that holds the SPAR. All over-the-counter and prescription medications are sold at pharmacies, even vitamins.

The main street is divided by a cement path, and is always bustling with both pedestrians and cars. Next to SPAR is an internet place that also sells some technology and a liquor store, where one can buy wine, beer & liquors. SPAR sells wine, but it’s very sweet. Across the street from SPAR is a vegetable market, a clothing store and others; a constant brei is in process in front of the shops, which sends smoke and the scents of burning meat around the neighborhood. Cars move very quickly on the wide sidewalk to access precious parking spaces, so we need to stay alert and be prepared to jump out of the way. Sometimes a couple white bums drunkenly call out to us as we walk by. Sunday night, one of the parking guards gave me a friendly nod of his head—a movement unusual for me—moving his head upwards and to the side after making eye contact.

Below is a photograph of the street that runs two blocks from ours to Stanton Street (too far away to see here), where Cotlands is just around the corner to the right.