Banna Ba Mamaenara in Lesotho: Brothers of darkness

02/18/21 • 20 min

How far are you willing to go to provide for your family? Would you put your life at risk to put bread on the table? What if you had no choice? In Lesotho thousands of men have felt so much pressure to provide for their families that they are employed by criminal gangs as illegal miners, digging for gold in clandestine mines. In some cases, they will never see the light again.

In this episode, we used extracts of the song ‘Marina’ by Rocco Granata, originally recorded in 1959. We also used music by Lesotho artist Selimo Thabane. You can check out his work at selimothabane.org and follow him on Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube as Selimo Thabane.

With original reporting and editing by Pascalinah Kabi in Maseru, Lesotho; Lillo Montalto Monella, Marta Rodriguez Martinez, Naira Davlashyan, Peya Mame Diaw & Arwa Barkallah in Lyon, Lory Martinez in Paris, France, and Clizia Sala in London, UK. Production Design by Studio Ochenta.Theme by Gabriel Dalmasso. Special thanks to our producer Natalia Oelsner for collecting the music for this episode. Our editor-in-chief is Yasir Khan.

Like this episode? Share with us your own stories of how you changed and challenged your view on what it means to be a man. Use #crylikeaboy. If you’re a French speaker, this podcast is also available in French and it’s called: Dans la Tête des Hommes.

Correction: The study conducted by Joanna Syrda shows that men who are the only earners are relatively stressed but they were not as stressed as men whose partners are the principal earners. Also, her research does not address the consequences for society, but only focuses on spousal relative income and male psychological distress.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

The Góor-jigéen in Senegal: Sexual Colonisation

What are the origins of homophobia in Africa? Where do the laws that punish same-sex relationships come from? South-African activist Khopotso Bodibe speaks to Youssef Belghmaidi, a Moroccan trans woman activist based in France, and Sheba Akpokli, an LGBTQI+ rights activist from Togo, about colonialism and its impact on sexual diversity and education.

Like this episode? Share your thoughts on how you have challenged your view on what it means to be a man using the hashtag #CryLikeaBoy. And if you are a French speaker, this podcast is also available in French: Dans la tête des hommes.

Hosted by Khopotso Bodibe; with original reporting and editing by Marta Moreiras in Dakar, Senegal; Naira Davlashyan, Marta Rodríguez Martínez and Lillo Montalto Monella in Lyon, and Lory Martinez in Paris, France; Clizia Sala in London, United Kingdom. Production Design by Studio Ochenta. Theme music by Gabriel Dalmasso. Music curation for this episode is by Natalia Oelsner. Graphic Design by Alexis Caddeo & Alois Bombardier. Our executive producer is Yasir Khan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next Episode

Banna Ba Mamaenara in Lesotho: No man's land

There's an impoverished mountainous district of Lesotho where many illegal mineworkers live with their families. Women often wait there for their husbands for months and sometimes years. Some men never return. In this episode, we talk about the fate of the people left behind by those men tasked by their families to provide, tasked to be breadwinners.

In this episode, we used music by Lesotho artist Selimo Thabane. You can check out his work at selimothabane.org.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.