by Fabian Ashwin Oliver
I would like to offer my deep gratitude for the space convened through the Solidarity Hub hosted by Act Ubumbano at the Jesuit Institute. For me, this was not merely a gathering, but a sacred space held with intentionality, gentleness, and care. Care itself became an act of solidarity. We were held carefully, listened to deeply, and invited into a space where our humanity could breathe. As scholar and cultural theorist Saidiya Hartman reminds us, “care is the antidote to violence.” I experienced this profoundly throughout the gathering.
One of the aspects I appreciated most was the fluidity of the process: the non-methodological methodology that became our starting point. Initially, this openness unsettled some participants. During the closing reflections, one person shared how the fluid structure disrupted their desire for control, certainty, performance, and the need to always “arrive” at something measurable. Yet, over time, this very openness became liberating. It invited stillness, presence, attentiveness, and the courage simply to be. I believe this is a praxis worth holding onto and deepening.
Importantly, this approach also allowed participants to become co-creators of the space rather than passive recipients of a pre-determined programme. It offered a more grounded, bottom-up practice of solidarity that emerged organically rather than mechanically.
The moments spent alone outdoors, writing, thinking, feeling, wrestling with questions, were equally profound. They allowed space for silence, discernment, and honesty. Beginning with the question, “What question have you been grappling with?” was a beautiful and vulnerable way of encountering one another. It opened the possibility for solidarity to emerge through shared searching rather than forced agreement. The biblical reading and reflection style was simply prophetic and needed for this time.
I am also deeply grateful to have been part of the listening team. It was a humbling experience that reminded us that listening is never merely about hearing words spoken aloud. We listened also to what was left unsaid – to longing, lament, grief, tension, hope, and yearning. In doing so, we became more aware of the biases, assumptions, and frameworks we ourselves carry into spaces of listening.
In terms of recommendations, I felt that much of the two days centred primarily on speaking, thinking, and intellectual reflection. While this was deeply valuable, our lives are also embodied. Perhaps future gatherings could incorporate more reflective or communal embodied practices such as walking together, breathing exercises, sensory activities, dancing, touching the soil, or moments of shared silence. The creation of the
altar was a powerful example of how embodiment can deepen communal reflection and belonging.
I also felt that music could have enriched the space further. Music has the capacity not only to accompany reflection, but to join people together beyond words. Singing together, listening together, and becoming makers of sound together can create another language of solidarity; the song of the heart.
Where context allows, I would also encourage stronger interfaith and ecumenical gestures through shared prayers, invocations, sacred readings, or reflective practices from different traditions (for example, a Christian morning prayer in IsiXhosa, a midday reflection from the Quran, and an evening African or secular invocation) could become soft yet powerful gestures towards solidarity across difference.
Ultimately, I leave deeply grateful for the space that was convened. We were invited to sit within a wounded society, to lament, to cry, to hope, to resist coloniality, and to discern pathways towards life, dignity, and justice together.
May the team and its partners be encouraged to continue this deeply life-giving work.
Aluta Continua.
Fabian Ashwin Oliver
Youth and Social Outreach Pastor (St Francis Anglican Church Parkview)
fabszashwin@gmail.com
