Dear Readers,
Few Johannesburg residents actually call their city by its full name. Instead, this massive metropolis, with its many neighborhoods, communities and histories, answers to many monikers—Joburg, Jozi, Joni, Joeys, Egoli—a testament to its multifaceted nature.
In our 16th guide, you’ll travel with us to this extraordinary and complex city, where the legacy of apartheid and the promise of a new era have left a precarious present for the multitudes who call it home. Among the features, you’ll read about the letters between Langston Hughes and Bloke Modisane, one of South Africa’s preeminent writers, as they built a friendship across the Atlantic. You’ll get transported to the end of the apartheid era, as journalist and US civil rights activist Charlyne Hunter-Gault recounts her experiences from this monumental time. You’ll meet groundbreaking artists and musicians, punk rock skateboarders and immigrant cricketers changing the game, as well as two generations of student activists who have fought to change their country for the better.
At Stranger’s Guide, our mission is to provide nuanced portraits of place by writers and photographers who call that place home. We intentionally seek locations that are often subjected to lazy cliches, with the hope we can turn stereotypes on their head. And our subscribers allow us to do this work.
Right now we’re trying to grow the Stranger’s Guide community—and we’d love your help. Please consider sharing our work with your friends and family. Forward our emails, lend your guides to a friend or even consider giving Stranger’s Guide gift subscriptions this holiday season.
We all know there’s never been a more critical time to encounter new perspectives and beliefs. That’s why we started Stranger’s Guide and why we’re so proud to deliver this volume to you.
Thank you, as always, for joining us on this journey,
Kira Brunner Don and Abby Rapoport
Co-founders, Stranger’s Guide
Contributor
