Best Of The Blogs 02 September: The Blogs You Should Be Reading Right Now

Catch up on some of this week's best blogs.
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African American female chemist drops liquid into a beaker. Her assistant is watching her. She is recording the findings on a laptop.
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1. The Development Of The African Continent Lies In The Inclusion Of Women

The question of the old boys' club remains: how do we ensure that women voices are heard where the "real decisions" are made. I recently hosted a Business Forum and invited Nnamdi Oranye, a renowned author known for his work documenting African innovation. Read more.

2. Ahmed Timol Paid The Ultimate Price For Standing Up To Apartheid

The story of Ahmed Timol's ["Timol"] brutal death at the hands of members of the South African Police's [SAP] notorious Security Branch [SB] did not begin with an impromptu road block on Fuel Street, Coronationville in Johannesburg on the night of 22 October 1971. Read more.

3. Thuli Madonsela: Socio-economic Inclusion Is A Matter of Urgency

My time in the office of the public protector afforded me the opportunity to interact with young people and I got to learn that the youth does not want democracy, they want freedom. Democracy has been around for centuries; however, it is rigid and it needs to be implemented in a way which it ensures that it works for all, writes Thuli Madonsela.

4. South Africa's Surveillance Figures Should Raise Alarms

The recent revelation that the state is intercepting the metadata of at least 70,000 cell phones every year should send a shiver down your spine -– and not just if you are a wanted suspect at large. Journalists, private investigators, politicians, political dissidents, civil society leaders –- are some of the first that come to mind. Read more.

5. The Poor Remain Locked Out Of The Digital Economy

South Africans earning R30,000 or more have an 82.4 percent chance of enjoying internet access, similar to their peers in developed economies. As income drops, the access rate plummets. Those earning between R14,000 and R18,000 have a 61.3 percent chance, those earning between R3,000 and R6,000, a 42 percent chance and for those earning less than R2,500, the penetration rate falls to below 30 percent. Read more.

6. We Need To Stop Romanticising Black Women's Hardship

According to Webster, endurance is "the ability to withstand hardship or adversity; especially, the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity" without giving way. The key words being tolerance, resilience hardship, bearing, sufferance, resignation, forbearance and stoicism. Read more.

7. There Continues To Be A Lack Of Representation In The STEM Field

There are many reasons as to why most women move away from STEM roles, these ranges from gender disparities in wages, training and promotional roles, psychological barriers or a lack of flexibility during child-bearing years. My own reasons though were threefold, writes Kamentha Pillay.