DAUNTLESS - Issue 12, May 2017

DAUNTLESS Bold African Stories

Issue 12 • May 2017 R35,00 (VAT included)

Life After Boko Haram See Fati Abubakar’s touching portraits

Missing Chibok girls, 3 years later Distressed parents

Kinshasa Cowboys How Buffalo Bill started a subculture in Congo

speak out

us l P Ethiopia-born artist Awol Erizku

talks first European exhibition ‘Make America Great Again’ & Trump Lust, desire, and fruit: Lady Skollie defies sexual politics in Johannesburg

NEWS 04

Missing Chibok Girls Distressed parents speak out

08

Life After Boko Haram Fati Abubakar’s touching portraits

10

Border Denials Africans wary of U.S. travel

8 FEATURES 16

The Kinshasa Cowboys How Buffalo Bill started a subculture

19

Mahesh Shantaram Giving Africans in India a voice

16

22

Lady Skollie Defying sexual politics in Joburg

24

Internet Sensation Sibu Mpanza living off the net

27

Tony Gum Artist in learning

LIFESTYLE 29

Ocean Life Discarded flip-flops huge hazard

31

Good Mood Boost Six Brain-healthy ingredients

19

35

For Wine Lovers The best vineyards in South Africa

37

All Abroad Chinese-funded railways linking Africa

INNOVATORS 39

Maria Borges 1st Black African to cover Elle

40

Edward Enninful Vogue’s 1st Black African male editor

42

6

The Nigerian Inventor flying jet jet car car Building a flying

2 • DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE

Letter from the editor Oh, my, you may be wondering, what on earth have you done? I know how protective readers can feel about the magazines they love, and I respect that. A serious, loyal readership may be our most precious asset. We’d be fools to trifle with it by making change for change’s sake. But there’s also the puzzling question, in this moment of technological upheaval, of how to intensify the experience of reading a print magazine. We remade the table of contents, the letters page, the opening essay, the interview, the lifestyle and the food section. We revived a dormant feature called Bold Africans because we wished it had never gone away. We invented a new photo essay and a new critics’ page. We even tinkered with the cover: the logo, by which I mean the scripted words DAUNTLESS, has shifted from the left to the middle.

Every tiny aspect of the redesign represents a decision we debated, sweated over and second-guessed until we ran out of time and had to send it off to the printer. But what you see here is not a new formula. It’s a beginning. Our aim is to make everything sharper, clearer, more alive and dynamic — while not altering the foundation of the magazine. DAUNTLESS is based on long-form narrative journalism, and this week’s cover photo story, by Fati Abubakar, is a prime example.

We’ve added a page called You Are Here, in which a writer offers a short dispatch from a particularly interesting part of Africa.

Editor In Chief Banathi Mgqoboka

Associate Editor Nobuntu Maake

Contributing Writers

Phoebe Parke Stephanie Busari Ibrahim Sawab

Our overarching goal with this redesign is to monopolize as much of your love for African culture as we possibly can, but it doesn’t stop there. This is the first step in what will eventually be a new web presence for the magazine. Everybody on staff will contribute now and then. We hope you’ll check it out and start talking back to us – we love hearing from you.

Banathi Mgqoboka

Art Director Sipho Ngwenya

Graphic Artist

Thembeka Moloi

Circulation Officer Out of the Box Circulation

The new Editor in Chief for DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE

Sales Officer Media One

DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE • 3

3 years later: Rebecca Samuel Yaga begs for the rescue of her daughter at the inaugural Chibok girls lecture held on third anniversary of the kidnapping.

Parents still pray for missing Chibok girls

BY STEPHANIE BUSARI AND IBRAHIM SAWAB

Her face etched in pain and her grief pal-

girls and other abducted persons unharmed,”

pable, the mother of one of the missing

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari

Chibok girls sunk to her knees and begged

said in a statement Thursday.

for the safe return of her daughter.

“On this solemn occasion, my appeal is that

Rebecca Samuel Yaga was one of dozens

we must not lose hope on the return of our

of parents of the Chibok schoolgirls who

remaining schoolgirls.”

attended an inaugural lecture Friday to

The lecture held at Abuja was one of a

commemorate the three-year anniversary of

series of events and rallies held Friday

their kidnappings.

to remember the 195 that are still miss-

Boko Haram seized 276 students from the

ing. It was given by the Emir of Kano,

Government Girls Secondary School in

Muhammed Sanusi, and was organized by

Chibok on April 14, 2014. Fifty-seven man-

the Bring Back our Girls group, which has

aged to escape almost immediately, while

long campaigned for their safe return.

two others were found by the army.

Oby Ezekwesili, a co-founder of the move-

It was the first time the parents had met at

Twenty one girls were released in October

ment, vowed Friday that they would con-

the school to hold a prayer session since

2016 following negotiations in a deal bro-

tinue to protest until the rest of the Chibok

their daughters were kidnapped.

kered by an unnamed Swiss contingent and

girls are brought back.

Yana Galang, the women’s leader of the

Nigerian authorities. Those negotiations

In Chibok, about 100 parents gathered at the

association of Chibok girls, told CNN:

are ongoing to free the remaining girls, the

secondary school for a multi-faith meeting

“Only a few parents got their daughters

government said.

with Muslim and Christian clerics to hold

back. Over 100, including myself and my

“The government is in constant touch

prayers for the safe return of the missing

husband, are still groaning for... those who

through negotiations, through local intelli-

girls.

were not found.”

gence, to secure the release of the remaining

4 • DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE

On this solemn occasion,my appeal is that we must not lose hope on the return of our remaining school girls.”

Vaccinations underway as meningitis kills hundreds in Nigeria

Nigeria is one of the 26 countries within the ‘meningitis belt’ of sub-Saharan Africa.

BY STEPHANIE BUSARI

A meningitis outbreak has killed 489 people

vaccines.

Common symptoms include stiff neck, high

in Nigeria this year, the World Health

“There is a vaccine available,” Chief

fever, sensitivity to light, confusion, head-

Organization (WHO) said Thursday. The

Executive Chikwe Ihekweazu said, “but it

aches and vomiting.

country’s Center for Disease Control report-

is not commercially available for the stereo-

Nigeria is one of the 26 countries within

ed 4,637 suspected cases.

type involved in this specific outbreak, and

the extensive region of sub-Saharan Africa

Meningitis is a serious infection of the

we have to make application to the World

known as the “meningitis belt,” where large

thin lining that surrounds the brain and

Health Organization for the vaccines.”

epidemics occur. The outbreaks peak in the

spinal cord, which can cause brain damage.

However, in a press release on April 1,

dry season in certain states due to the low

“Stereotype C,” a new strain of meningo-

Health Minister Isaac Adewole said that up

humidity and dusty conditions and usu-

coccal meningitis, emerged in Nigeria in

to 1.3 million vaccines had been acquired,

ally end as the rainy season approaches,

2013.

including 500,000 doses of meningococcal

Ihekweazu said. Nigeria records some of

Untreated, meningococcal meningitis, the

vaccine provided by the WHO.

the highest incidences of the disease on the

bacterial form of the disease, is fatal in 50%

An additional 820,000 units have been

continent.

of cases.

donated by the British government, accord-

“Meningitis is a tough disease, especially

The WHO also said that a vaccination

ing to the WHO.

during this period, and it is associated with

campaign organized by the International

As part of the campaign, an emergency

overcrowding, understanding the living

Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision

response team has been sent to the five

conditions in the country, people must keep

is underway in Nigeria.

states in the northwest of the country that

their building ventilated,” he said.

The coordinating group which is managed

have been hardest hit by the outbreak.

“We believe that our concerted efforts will

by the WHO, Médecins sans Frontières,

Along with vaccines, 20,000 vials of anti-

bring this outbreak under control, as we also

the International Federation of Red Cross

biotics have been sent to treat people with

work towards preventing outbreaks of this

and Red Crescent Societies, and the United

the disease.

scale in the future,” the Center for Disease

Nations Children’s Fund is tasked with

According to the WHO, even when the

Control said as local and international orga-

provision of emergency vaccine supplies

disease is diagnosed early and adequate

nizations work together to manage the

during outbreak emergencies.

treatment begins, 5% to 10% of patients die,

epidemic.

Last month, Nigeria’s Center for Disease

typically within 24 to 48 hours of the onset

Control warned that there were not enough

of symptoms.

DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE • 5

LA artist Awol Erizku surrounded by his work.

Artist Awol Erizku opens first European show, slams Trump Los Angeles artist Awol Erizku’s first European exhibition ‘Make America Great Again’ has opened in London but if you are expecting a pro-Trump theme, think again.

As he [Trump] rose to power, I just felt more and more compelled to make a body of work to say something about his rise’’

By PHOEBE PARKE

T

he Ethiopia-born artist,

I Not’) he explained that the numbers

on pieces about Trump, but that he felt he

who is also responsible for

relate to the American presidents; “When

had to do something; “He’s always doing

Beyoncé’s iconic pregnan-

I first started this series of paintings in

some outlandish things in the media so I

cy shoot, shares his thoughts on the cur-

California, they were infamously called

can’t even tell you when this happened,

rent political situation in America through

the gang paintings because a lot of the

but I think it was probably the first time

art -- and he’s not worried about hurting

numbers were direct references to street

he was talking about building a wall in

anyone’s feelings.

gangs in LA.”

Mexico, or banning Muslim countries or

“As he [Trump] rose to power, I just felt

“The numbers in this particular painting

something.”

more and more compelled to make a body

refer to the presidents, so you have num-

“I’m Muslim, I’m black, I live in California, a

of work to say something about his rise,”

ber 42 and number 44 that are not crossed

lot of the people there are Mexicans, so a

Erizku told CNN in an interview before the

out, who are my favorite presidents -- that

lot of my friends are Mexicans,” Erizku said.

exhibition opened.

is Bill Clinton and Barack Obama -- and 45

And there are other pieces about Trump

As Erizku stands in front of a sheet of cor-

being Trump.”

too.

rugated metal with numbers spray paint-

Erizku said he can’t remember what spe-

In the middle of the exhibition there is a

ed on them (a piece called ‘How Could

cific event made him want to start working

piece called ‘Them Changes’ - a door with

6 • DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE

Awol Erizku, ‘How Could I Not’, 2017.

Awol Erizku, ‘Them Changes’, 2017.

As with all his exhibitions, Erizku has a mixtape to accompany the show, he says his work feeds off it.

“My work does borrow from contemporary music” said Erizku. “With the number 12 piece [Wave Brake], in contemporary rap music number 12 makes reference to the police. It’s my way of marrying abstract art and contemporary music and creating a new vernacular for myself.

“With a lot of these works, the title of the piece is from a song that sometimes I’m playing in the studio, and then ultimately they make it into the mixtape that’s accompanied by sometimes a narrative,

Awol Erizku, ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’, 2017.

sometimes a soundbite that I think is important to the entire show.”

“A lot of the songs in the mixtape are very political, there’s Kendrick Lamar on there,

a barred window, scratches all over it and

to four different cities in Ethiopia and

Joey Bada$$, Solange is in there and if

the word ‘Trump’ spray painted on the bot-

worked with the sex workers there and I

you know the culture and you know what

tom, but in the place of a ‘T’ is a swastika.

photographed them. ”During that trip one

these artists bring to music then I don’t

“I feel like I have to talk about this piece

of the first things that I did was I stopped

have to explain it.

right here, because of the use of the swas-

by Egypt and I went inside a pyramid and

“In Kendrick’s case, he has a grip on what’s

tika,” said Erizku.

I had this visceral feeling, I can’t really

happening in America and he’s become

“On the eve of the election I was driving

explain it, other than to say I think Egypt is

the voice of our generation in a lot of

back home one night and I just saw this

really important for me.

ways, and Joey Badass’s album that he just

whole wall, and it said ‘F*CK TRUMP’ and

“Ever since that trip I’ve been more and

put out is very amazing and it’s his version

the ‘T’ was a swastika and I thought that

more in touch with my roots and trying

of this, it’s his version of ‘Make America

was a really interesting thing.” Although

to use it in a way that makes sense for me

Great Again.’”

Erizku moved to America when he was

-- I’m an American artist but I have African

very young, he has tried to connect with

roots so I’m trying to marry the two, and

his Ethiopian roots; “I went back three

trying to make something new. I think it

or four years ago to do a body of work

gives me this advantage of having this

called ‘The Reclining Venus,’ where I went

unique perspective.”

Awol Erizku’s exhibition “Make America Great Again” is on show at Ben Brown Fine Arts, London from April 20 - 2 June 2017.

DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE • 7

Life after Boko Haram

Portraits by Fati Abubakar

Ya Hajja –“Boko Haram attacked our village, Malari in Konduga Local Government, and killed my son. So my friend and I found a car and came to Maiduguri. We live with my other son, but he can’t feed us all the time, so we beg on the street.”

Kellu –“Myself, my sons, their wives, and their children ran to Maiduguri. It’s 16 of us in four rooms. We’ve left everything behind.

We don’t have money anymore. Not even food. I want my sons to find jobs so the family can survive.”

Baana Hajja – “The Boko Haram terrorists went away with two of my siblings and my brother was shot on our way to Maiduguri.

Even after finding safety here, we have lots of problems. Food, rent.

We’ve too (many) issues. And there’s not much trade. I sew caps but sometimes you can’t even buy the thread because there’s no money.

The government and NGO food distribution is yet to reach our neighborhood.”

Sergeant Lawan – “I was an ex-soldier living in Bama when the Boko Haram terrorists came. They burned all of my property, my animals and killed my two sons. My son had married June 15th, 2013 and he was killed 1st September, two months after his wedding. We walked to Maiduguri and have been living here for some time now, but I struggle with food, clothing and a mattress to lay my head on. I still don’t have food.”

Fatime – “(Boko Haram) didn’t touch me because they said I was old. So they left with the other women in the town, I heard the women screaming. I didn’t sleep for days. But I continued living in the neighborhood, selling groundnut. The (Boko Haram) boys used to come and buy the peanuts as they passed. Day and night I thought of ways to leave the town. Eventually I ran. It took me a week to walk from the village in Baga to Maiduguri.”

Ibrahim –“I don’t know where my parents are. I don’t know whether they died or are somewhere else after we all ran from our village. But some of my aunts are in another camp. I visit them occasionally. I live here in Kusheri (a new community that moved to Maiduguri). The Bulama (traditional leader) gave me a room. His family feeds me. I don’t go to (formal) school but I have joined the other kids in the Islamic school in the neighborhood.”

8 • DAUNTLESS MAGAZINE