Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela
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Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela (born 15 February 1955) is the Research Chair in Studies in Historical Trauma and Transformation at
Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch University (SU) (, ) is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant university in Sub-Sahara ...
in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. She graduated from
Fort Hare University The University of Fort Hare () is a public university in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It was a key institution of higher education for Africans from 1916 to 1959 when it offered a Western-style academic education to students from across ...
with a bachelor's degree and an Honours degree in
psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
. She obtained her master's degree in Clinical Psychology at
Rhodes University Rhodes University () is a public research university located in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is one of four universities in the province. Established in 1904, Rhodes University is the prov ...
. She received her PhD in psychology from the
University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
. Her doctoral thesis, entitled "Legacies of violence: An in-depth analysis of two case studies based on interviews with perpetrators of a 'necklace' murder and with
Eugene de Kock Eugene Alexander de Kock (born 29 January 1949) is a former South African Police colonel, torturer, and assassin, active under the apartheid government. Nicknamed "Prime Evil" by the press, De Kock was the commanding officer of C10, a counteri ...
", offers a perspective that integrates psychoanalytic and social psychological concepts to understand extreme forms of violence committed during the apartheid era. Her main interests are traumatic memories in the aftermath of political conflict, post-conflict reconciliation, empathy, forgiveness, psychoanalysis and
intersubjectivity Intersubjectivity describes the shared understanding that emerges from interpersonal interactions. The term first appeared in social science in the 1970s and later incorporated into psychoanalytic theory by George E. Atwood and Robert Stolorow, ...
. She served on the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission A truth commission, also known as a truth and reconciliation commission or truth and justice commission, is an official body tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government (or, depending on the circumstances, non-state ac ...
(TRC). She currently works at the
University of the Free State The University of the Free State (; Sotho language, Sesotho: ''Yunivesithi ya Freistata'') is a multi-campus public university in Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State (province), Free State and the judicial capital of South Africa. It wa ...
in
Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...
as a senior research professor.


Life and career


Early life

Gobodo-Madikizela was born in Langa Township, the oldest residential area for Black Africans in
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
. The eldest daughter of William Wilberforce Tukela and Nobantu Herman-Gilda Gobodo, she was given the names Pumla Phillipa by her parents. Influenced by the
Black Consciousness Movement The Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) was a grassroots anti-apartheid activist movement that emerged in South Africa in the mid-1960s out of the political vacuum created by the jailing and banning of the African National Congress and Pan Af ...
, which she joined during her high school days, she dropped her English middle name, and formalised the name change later in her adulthood. Gobodo-Madikizela attended Inanda Seminary, a boarding school for girls near
Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...
, which was founded and run by the American Board of Missions, and at the time the only private school for black girls in South Africa. She credits her parents with having taught her a deep sense of caring for others, integrity and a strong work ethic. She described her early childhood as "happy, despite apartheid." Yet she also talks about how she discovered the beauty of Cape Town only in her adulthood when she visited the city after the historic welcoming of
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
from
Pollsmoor Prison Pollsmoor Prison, officially known as Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison, is located in the Cape Town suburb of Tokai in South Africa. Pollsmoor is a maximum security penal facility that continues to hold some of South Africa's most dangerous c ...
in February 1990, and relocating to Cape Town to study for her PhD at the University of Cape Town in 1991. In a poignant statement, that illustrates how the
Apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
government's
Group Areas Act Group Areas Act was the title of three acts of the Parliament of South Africa enacted under the apartheid government of South Africa. The acts assigned racial groups to different residential and business sections in urban areas in a syste ...
went beyond geographic separation of racial groups according to race-defined residential areas, Gobodo-Madikizela said, "Although
Table Mountain Table Mountain (; ) is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway, cableway or hik ...
is visible from Langa Township, I never saw this iconic mountain during my childhood. It was a world I did not belong to, and therefore a world whose beauty I could not experience until much later in life." She experienced the feeling of being a "second-class citizen" in her country of birth most strongly during her first trip to the United States in 1989, when she spent a few months as a research fellow affiliated with the Psychology Department at the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. She encountered many Americans who eagerly spoke about the beautiful landscape of a city about which she knew very little.


School and university years

Like most Black South Africans of her generation who were active in student politics, both her high-school and university years were interrupted by expulsions, student protests and closure of universities. After expulsion from
Inanda Seminary School Inanda Seminary School is one of the oldest schools for girls in South Africa. It was founded in 1869 at Inanda, KwaZulu-Natal, Inanda, a settlement just over north of Durban, by Daniel Lindley, Daniel and Lucy Lindley, an American missionary cou ...
(for refusing to divulge the names of fellow strike organisers without the principal's assurance that divulging the names would not lead to expulsion of the students) her parents sent her to a co-ed school, Shawbury High School (
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Winnie Nomzamo Madikizela-Mandela (born Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela; 26 September 1936 – 2 April 2018), also known as Winnie Mandela, was a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist, second wife of Nelson Mandela. During ...
graduated from the same high school). At this school, Gobodo-Madikizela directed her activist energy to drama. She directed and acted in her first play, '' A Man for All Seasons'', adapted from a book by
Robert Bolt Robert Oxton Bolt (15 August 1924 – 20 February 1995) was an English playwright and a screenwriter, known for writing the screenplays for '' Lawrence of Arabia'', '' Doctor Zhivago'', and '' A Man for All Seasons'', the latter two of which w ...
based on the story of Sir
Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VII ...
. She worked with an all-female student cast, who collaborated and assembled "costumes" for the play, and with the help of the school principal raised funds to travel to perform the play at other schools, including a school in the South Coast of
KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...
. Throughout her primary and high school education, her academic strength was in the sciences and mathematics, and she obtained distinctions and prizes for mathematics at Inanda Seminary. In her first year at
Fort Hare University The University of Fort Hare () is a public university in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It was a key institution of higher education for Africans from 1916 to 1959 when it offered a Western-style academic education to students from across ...
, she registered for a BSc degree, taking a combination of courses (called "pre-med" at the time) that would allow her to enter into medical school. Her parents wanted her to become a medical doctor, however, an incident in the Zoology laboratory led to her abandoning the idea of a medical degree. She received her BA degree from Fort Hare University in 1977, and completed her Honours in Psychology in 1979. She later went on to train as clinical psychologists at Rhodes University, where she received a master's degree in Clinical Psychology in 1984. She worked for a few years at the Psychiatric Clinic in Mtata before taking up a lectureship position in psychology at the university now known as Walter Sisulu Metropolitan University. In this period, she also ran a part-time clinical practice, married Msimang Madikizela (of the Madikizela clan from the rural village Mbongweni, Bizana), and gave birth to her son and only child. She divorced in 1987.


Professional life

She worked with Martin Luitingh, who was a South African advocate involved in human rights work. She was invited to join Martin Luitingh's team as a defence expert witness in a "Necklace murder" trial. Field research deepened her interest in the psychological aftermath of mass trauma and violence. In 1991, Gobodo-Madikizela started a PhD at the
University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
on "Necklace murders" committed in the context of crowd violence. In 1994–1995, she was at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
when she was invited to join the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa (TRC). She served on the Human Rights Violations Committee until May 1998. In 1998, she returned to Harvard University to take up a fellowship at the
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University, also known as the Harvard Radcliffe Institute, is an institute of Harvard University that fosters interdisciplinary research across the humanities, sciences, social sciences, arts ...
. She completed her doctoral dissertation in November 1999 and graduated at the University of Cape Town in June 2000. She remained in Cambridge for two more years, with affiliations at Harvard's Carr Centre for Human Rights Policy at the Kennedy School, and the Center for Ethics at Harvard Divinity School respectively. In this period, she gave lectures and started writing on what she referred to as the "new phenomenon" she witnessed while serving on the TRC's Human Rights Violations Committee – forgiveness of the unforgivable.


Research on forgiveness

Gobodo-Madikizela has meditated on the concepts central to the phenomenon of forgiveness and developed a body of work revolving around the process of reconciliation. She describes her current research as the phenomenological study of empathy and what being moved to offer forgiveness entails. In her award-winning book, '' A Human Being Died That Night: A South African Story of Forgiveness'', Gobodo-Madikizela argues that the TRC overturns
Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt (born Johanna Arendt; 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German and American historian and philosopher. She was one of the most influential political theory, political theorists of the twentieth century. Her work ...
's notion of acts that are unforgivable and unpunishable, and for which no apology can be made. She claims that, at South Africa's TRC, precisely the opposite occurred – apology and forgiveness for what Arendt referred to as "radical evil." In both academic and popular settings she has examined the concepts that underlie the process of forgiving in the aftermath of historical trauma, and the potential for dialogue, remorse and forgiveness to break intergenerational cycles of repetition.


Professorship in University of Cape Town

Gobodo-Madikizela was appointed Associate professor of Psychology at the University of Cape Town in 2003. She became a full professor at the same university in 2010. Her inaugural lecture, entitled "The 'Face of the Other': Human Dialogue at Solms Delta and the Meaning of Moral Imagination", focused on the 320-year-old Solms Delta estate in Franschhoek, home to the "Museum van de Caab" - a museum of the farm's slave heritage from pre-colonial times. In her address, Gobodo-Madikizela used Solms' story as a representative story for recognizing 'the other' in dialogue, and to demonstrate the importance of memory and memorialisation in the aftermath of historical trauma.


Senior Research Professor at University of the Free State

In 2012, she resigned from the University of Cape Town to take up a position as Senior Research Professor for trauma, forgiveness and reconciliation at the
University of the Free State The University of the Free State (; Sotho language, Sesotho: ''Yunivesithi ya Freistata'') is a multi-campus public university in Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State (province), Free State and the judicial capital of South Africa. It wa ...
.


Research Chair in Studies in Historical Trauma and Transformation at Stellenbosch University

In 2017, Professor Gobodo-Madikizela was appointed to the post of Research Chair in Studies in Historical Trauma and Transformation at
Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch University (SU) (, ) is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant university in Sub-Sahara ...
in the Western Cape. She describes her work as focusing mainly on two strands of research. The first is exploring ways in which the impact of the dehumanising experiences of oppression and violent abuse continues to play out in the next generation in the aftermath of historical trauma. The second research area expands on her earlier work on remorse and forgiveness and probes the role of empathy more deeply by engaging a perspective that makes transparent the interconnected relationship among empathy, Ubuntu and the embodied African phenomenon of inimba. She currently sits on the International Advisory Board of The Senator George J. Mitchell Institute For Global Peace, Security And Justice at
Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...
.


Visiting Professor at University of Uppsala, Sweden

From August to December 2015, she was a guest professor at
Uppsala university Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...
in Sweden. She holds the Claude Ake Visiting Chair, which is co-financed by the
Nordic Africa Institute Nordic Africa Institute (NAI) () serves as a research, documentation and information centre on modern Africa for the Nordic countries. The Institute conducts independent, policyrelevant research, provides analysis and informs decisionmaking, with ...
and the Department of Peace and Conflict Research at
Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...
.


Writings

Pumla Godobo-Madikizela has authored and edited a number of books, including award-winning '' A Human Being Died That Night''. *''A Human Being Died that Night: A South African Story of Forgiveness'' (2003) *''Narrating Our Healing: Perspectives on Working through Trauma'' (2008, co-author with Chris van der Merwe) *''Memory, Narrative and Forgiveness: Perspectives on the Unfinished Journeys of the Past'' (2009, co-editor with Chris van der Merwe) Her critically acclaimed book ''A Human Being Died that Night'' received several awards, including the
Alan Paton Award The ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Awards are awarded annually to South African writers by the South African weekly newspaper the ''Sunday Times''. They comprise the ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Award for Non-fiction and the ''Sunday Times'' ...
(sometimes referred to as "the Pulitzer" of non-fiction writing in South Africa), and the Christopher Award in the United States. The theatre adaptation of the book premiered at the
Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. History The original ''Hampstead Theatre Clu ...
in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
in May 2013.


Honours

*Carnegie Resident Scholars Fellowship, University of the Witwatersrand, 2011. *Social Change Award. Awarded by Rhodes University for "contribution made by leading psychologists to social change in South Africa," September 2010. *Eleanor Roosevelt Medal, 2007 *Honoured among "100 People who made a difference" in Permanent Exhibit of Hall of Heroes in the National Underground Railroad Freedom Centre in Cincinnati, 2005. *The Alan Paton Book Award for ''A Human Being Died That Night: A Story of Forgiveness'', 2004. *The Christopher Award in the United States for ''A Human Being Died That Night'', 2003. *''A Human Being Died That Night'' nominated for Best Book of the Year by the National Book Critics Circle, 2004. *Honorary Doctor of Law awarded by Holy Cross College, May 2002. *The Dr Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award by Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC), Tufts University, March, 2001. *Peace Fellowship, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Research, Harvard University, 1998–99. *Distinguished Old Rhodian Award in 2017 *In 2019
Rhodes University Rhodes University () is a public research university located in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is one of four universities in the province. Established in 1904, Rhodes University is the prov ...
in
Grahamstown Makhanda, formerly known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 75,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Gqeberha and southwest of East London. It is the largest town in the Makana Local Mun ...
announced it would award Gobodo-Madikizela an honorary doctorate in laws (LLD, hc) *She was awarded the 2024 Templeton Prize Laureate by
John Templeton Foundation The John Templeton Foundation (Templeton Foundation) is a Philanthropy, philanthropic organization founded by John Templeton in 1987. Templeton became wealthy as a Contrarian investing, contrarian investor, and wanted to support progress in relig ...
.


References


External links

*
Trauma, Forgiveness and Reconciliation Studies University of the Free State Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela at University of the Free State Omega Institute profile of Gobodo-Madikizela
* ttps://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/01/theater/review-a-human-being-died-that-night-a-look-at-an-apartheid-assassin-at-bam.htmlReview of a play based on Gobodo-Madikizela's novel
Current Holder (2015) of the Claude Ake Visiting Chair at Uppsala University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gobodo-Madikizela, Pumla 1955 births Living people Clinical psychologists Harvard University people Reconciliation Rhodes University alumni South African psychologists South African women psychologists Academic staff of the University of Cape Town University of Cape Town alumni Academic staff of the University of the Free State