Let's build a house for Ranamane!
My name is Lee and I want us to build a permanent, strong home for an awesome man from the Kalahari desert in Botswana called Ranamane. Originally from London, I am a researcher specialising in the endangered languages spoken by the San (aka the hunter-gatherers, aka Bushmen) of southern Africa. I work at the Humboldt University of Berlin. Why are these languages so fascinating? Well, they employ a phenomenal inventory of clicks, for one. Having lived for thousands of years and long before any other soceity arrived in southern Africa, the hunter-gatherer and forager lifestyle is fast vanishing. Researchers such as myself are documenting the linguistic diversity of the Kalahari before it is too late, working with the remaining speakers of these fascinating languages to learn more about human languages. Learn more about my research in eastern Botswana here.
Now meet Ranamane, known fondly to most as Rams. He is one of a handful of competent speakers of the Tchoe language spoken in eastern Botswana. But he doesn't just speak it, he isn't only one of a tiny few who remember the old days, the stories, the folktales... he is also a musician of extraordinary talent. He plays guitar and composes songs in his mother tongue - one of which is known across Botswana. Ranamane's music tells the story of the Kalahari bushman, and many songs pay tribute to a way of living that is now no longer possible, or to the collective history of the indigenous peoples of the Kalahari. Other songs relate to hardship, poverty, oppression, resettlement, and life as society's underdog.
Did I mention Rams is old enough to be my granddad?
Despite his beautiful music, his wisdom, his passion, and his charm, Rams, now in his 70s, lives like most San in Botswana and indigenous communities worldwide - on the edge of society. Rams gets by playing and singing at small gatherings or in bars for small tips, rarely making enough to care for his children and grandchildren. Frequently rewarded with just a small meal of porridge and a bit of meat. Occasionally, he may be invited to larger ceremonies - but it is not unheard of for the San people to get a raw deal. Rams and his entire family live in unstable and temporary hut-like shelters that offer meagre protection from the Kalahari rains or the baking sun. Every day, Rams walks to neighbours at the other end of the village to ensure his guitar is locked up somewhere for fear it might become somebody else's meal ticket.
I have known Rams now for two years. He has taught me his language and shared his culture and life story, from hunting as a small boy, to working in mines. My current fieldwork trip comes to an end in 3 weeks time, but before it does, I would like to help Rams with one of his own projects. Building a house. For him, his family, and his two guitars. Rams lives for his music and taught himself as a child using a handmade instrument out of old metal cans and wire strings. If you see Rams, he is never without his guitar - no doubt his guitar has got him through tough times. I will leave here with somewhere Rams can keep his most treasured possessions safe. Will you help?
Rams has been saving for a long time to build himself something more stable, buying some bricks here and there. I am only temporarily in Botswana and will continue to look at how my own research project can get some shovels in the ground. We are asking locals for spare bricks or help us with labour. We have three weeks to get this done (before I leave) and we know it is absolutely doable (TIA - this is Africa!). Our goal is a permanent bricks and mortar 1-2 room structure that is typical in rural Botswana - but this depends entirely on you. A one room will set us back around 10,000 Pula - around about 900 Euros to cover materials (metal sheeting, wood for the frame, bricks, a window, a door, cement, paint, sand, labour, transportation). But this is my first time building a house - and who knows what might crop up (again, TIA, this is Africa!). It would also be great if we can connect the building to a water pipe - or at least provide the fittings so that it can be connected at a later stage. Then there are all the little things, like padlocks for the front door, textiles for curtains to give some intimacy, a table and basic furniture... we really are starting from very very humble beginnings! That is why the target is currently set at 1500 Euro - but I would love to see this beaten. Every penny will be spent!
This house IS going up!! It's winter in the Kalahari right now and this winter Rams will have somewhere for his guitars so that he doesn't have to walk far to keep them safe on a daily basis. But more than the financial help you'd be offering, I'd like to connect this talented man with the world. You will help me show him the kind of generosity that he has shown me. If it was not for Rams and others like him, we'd not have the kind of knowledge we have on human language diversity and human history in Africa. And this connects and concerns us all. For all he's done and been through, I think he deserves a house. As does any good, witty, kind, supportive, encouraging, and devoted granddad.
I am new to all this, but can try to keep those interested updated as frequently as I can. I leave Botswana on August 20 2018 and promise a full progress report before then.
Please pledge whatever you can. Please send this to anyone who might be able to help in some way. We are building the house in a rural village in Serowe, in the Central District of Botswana. Perhaps you're local and want to help with materials? Then please get in touch too! Maybe you have traveled to Botswana, and would like to help a local man and his family. The level of support received for Rams will ultimately decide what can be built. At last count, there were regularly 8 people dependent on Rams staying on his small plot of land, including another elderly woman. So if we can expand to a two roomed structure, that would be great. This is, however, more than the current target - but the sky is the limit, right?
