Eusebius McKaiser interviewed Sisonke Msimang about her new book, The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela.

Msimang is the author of the critically acclaimed Always Another Country: A Memoir of Exile and Home, which was shortlisted for the 2018 Sunday Times Alan Paton Award.

Her new book is a short but razor-sharp critical reflection on the turbulent yet remarkable life of Winnie Mandela. Msimang situates her political career and legacy in the contemporary context, what she means today in social and political terms, by exploring different aspects of her iconic persona.

McKaiser asks Msimang whether Winnie Mandela has ‘blood on her hands’.

‘Is she morally and criminally culpable,’ he says, ‘if not for actions directly from her own hands, those down in her name?’

‘The answer is so complex that it has to be both yes and no,’ Msimang says. ‘And it cannot be a question that we only target at Winnie Mandela, which is the point of the book.

‘To ask that question of Winnie Mandela as though she were the only person engaged in the Struggle is to somehow exceptionalise her in ways that seem misogynistic, and that are self-serving and revisionist in their essence.’

Listen to the full conversation:

Categories Non-fiction South Africa South African Current Affairs

Tags Eusebius McKaiser Jonathan Ball Publishers Podcasts Sisonke Msimang The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela Winnie Mandela