Photographs from UKZN’s Gandhi-Luthuli Documentation Centre were included in an exhibition of Durban’s “shameful past”.Airing Durban’s “Dirty Linen”
Historic photographs from UKZN’s Gandhi-Luthuli Documentation Centre were featured in an exhibition highlighting Durban’s ‘Dirty Linen’.
The exhibition, titled: Dirty Linen, “Other” Durban, was run by Mr Leonard Rosenberg, co-ordinator of the Research of Curries and Surrounds (ROCS) research project and the Durban University of Technology Campus Planner.
According to Rosenberg, Dirty Linen “airs” the shameful past of the former Durban City Council, which established workers’ compounds - Magazine Barracks, Railway Barracks and Somtseu Road Hostel - and engineered a “dual town” which became the “non- European” CBD of Grey Street and Warwick Junction.
The “dirty linen” theme was displayed with images on cloth to resemble washing on a line.
Photographs from UKZN’s Documentation Centre highlight Magazine Barracks in Durban’s city centre.
The Documentation Centre houses a wide variety of collections, including photographs and information on the Black Consciousness Movement, papers and documents on struggle stalwart Phyllis Naidoo and the Indentured Indian Collection, among others.
The Centre’s Mr Thiru Munsamy said he was pleased the photographs were seen by a cross section of people. ‘The Centre has a wealth of information on the history of the country, particularly that of indentured Indian labourers as well as volumes of information about South African Indians dating back to the time of their arrival in South Africa.
‘The information on the Magazine Barracks was donated by individuals who wanted to share their experiences and the experiences of others about living in the Barracks,’ said Munsamy.
Raylene Captain-Hasthibeer