A celebration featuring poetry, music, and thoughtful discussions characterised the Harmony of Hands Indaba and Festival. Hosted by the Centre for Education Rights and Transformation (CERT) in the Faculty of Education at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and the African Left Handers Foundation (ALHF), this one-day festival aimed to develop strategies for creating an inclusive society for left-handed individuals, particularly left-handed children.
Held on 17 September 2024, at the Chinua Achebe Auditorium in the Library on the Auckland Park Campus, the event brought together community members, activists, NGOs, left-handed individuals, government representatives, including the Department of Basic Education, academics, and artists. Participants celebrated the uniqueness of left-handed individuals while highlighting the challenges they face in a world increasingly normalized for right-handed individuals.
World-renowned poet, storyteller, and motivational speaker Gcina Mhlophe opened the festivities with an impassioned performance celebrating the African child. Following her, South Africa’s Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka delivered the keynote address, where she candidly reflected on the normalization of right-handedness.
“As I went to the bathroom this morning, I was deliberate about looking around the room to see how the space is organised. I discovered that it is not necessarily designed with left-handed people in mind,” she shared earnestly. Gcaleka emphasised the need for changes across all spheres of society to ensure spaces and services are accessible to left-handed individuals.
“When we talk about the struggle for equity and equality, we often leave behind women, children, and people with disabilities. It is time we acknowledge that we also leave left-handed people behind. We must remedy this. We need to create an environment where the rights and experiences of left-handed individuals are better understood. We must build a society that leaves no one behind,” she stated.
Gcaleka assured attendees that she would champion the cause of left-handers, pledging, “Once I learn something, I speak about it everywhere I go. You have a champion in me; this will be a standard agenda item in every platform I take.”
Professor June Bam Hutchison, director of CERT, used her opening remarks to outline the collaboration with the ALHF and its goals. “A conversation I had with individuals led to the birth of this project. We questioned whether we truly understood what is happening in schools regarding left-handed children. At CERT, we focus on community rights and the plight of children in impoverished areas to ensure empowerment and inclusivity.”
Professor Bam Hutchison noted that left-handed children often face challenges within the public education system, where overworked and under-resourced educators struggle to provide adequate support. “Regardless of our policy development efforts, what matters most is what happens in the classroom. We have heard from ALHF that children are still being punished in schools for being left-handed. A frustrated, overworked teacher, overwhelmed by administrative tasks and lacking training on creating an enabling environment for left-handed children, cannot effectively help these students.”
The event featured panel discussions that brought together academics, policymakers, and activists to explore curriculum design that considers left-handed children, the types of materials needed, and policy changes to support inclusivity. Testimonies from left-handed individuals about their experiences in a right-handed world added a personal touch to the discussions.
The cultural programme, led by Eugene Skeef, a professor of practice at CERT, included poetry and musical performances from jazz pianist Yonela Mnana and jazz vocalist Nkoto Malebye, filling the auditorium with joy and hope. This vibrant conclusion capped off a day of robust engagement and advocacy for left-handed individuals.
To watch the Indaba and festival, click here: https://fb.watch/uQTYgyKf3x/
