Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-v5vhk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-28T00:28:25.373Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Scene 6

from The Bram Fischer Waltz

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 March 2018

Harry Kalmer
Get access

Summary

Lights up onBRAMwith hat, tweed jacket, picnic basket and binoculars. He is short of breath. An African marching band slightly off-key, plays in the distance.

BRAM [calling to Molly and children offstage]: Molly … Over here … Mens kan beter sien [One can see better] …

Come Ruth … Ilse …

BRAMtakes out a handkerchief and wipes his face.

Sjoe, it's a stiff climb up this hill isn't it … [looks through binoculars]. Just see how neat the stage is. And the people! The police tried to stop them from coming but it was in vain … Just look at all the people. How many people do you think there are, Molly? Look at the stalls … the ANC flags … the posters. Look girls: ‘Equal rights for all.’ It's like a church bazaar. You're not looking at a soccer field in Kliptown, kids … But at history being made. Look there's Oom Piet … Uncle Piet Beyleveld…

The Special Branch and Blackie Swart's banning order prevent us from being there, Molly. But Piet Beyleveld is on the stage to keep the name of the communists high.

In the background we hear a voice reciting the Freedom Charter. BRAM mimes the activities of pouring tea, etc. Every now and then he lifts the binoculars. Claps and cheers.

Some people in the ANC said the communists hi-jacked the Freedom Charter. But it is not true. Rusty Bernstein may have written it, but his words were just the wishes of the grannies and mine workers written on brown OK Bazaars shopping bags. Thousands of little pieces of paper that were all over their house for months while they were working on it. The Freedom Charter wasn't written by the communists but by the wishes of the people of South Africa.

BRAM addresses the audience and changes back into prison gear.

At 3.30 on the afternoon of the second day the police struck … They said that those who were there were suspected of high treason. When the people realised what was going on, they started singing ‘Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika’.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Bram Fischer Waltz , pp. 38 - 40
Publisher: Wits University Press
Print publication year: 2016

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×