Laying ghosts to rest

Mamphela Ramphele tackles the ghosts of our past head-on in her frank discussion of the state of our democracy. Racism and sexism, a focus on transformation at the expense of delivery, capacity problems and the unintended consequences of policies such as Black Economic Empowerment and affirmative action are among the dilemmas she dissects. Ramphele makes a strong plea for active citizenship, for channeling anger into creative energy. 'Our tendency to label whatever whatever we disagree with as hostile speaks to the incompleteness of our journey. We need to acknowledge the woundedness of our psyche as part of the legacy of our past.