Covid-19: Memorial & Tributes

The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 has meant that many of us have lost loved ones and been denied the opportunity to mourn and pay tribute to their lives in a manner to which we have become accustomed.

Limited numbers at funerals, restricted visitations in hospitals, and the loss of many communication channels have all contributed to making a challenging time even more difficult for those whose family and friends have passed away this year.

Mandela8 provide this space as an open memorial.

You are welcome to send us any photographs, obituaries, or just simple tributes to those that you have lost and we will display them on this page.

Please use this form to submit your tribute: https://tinyurl.com/mandela8memorial

Memorials

A memorial for Benedict Zulu
Written by Beatrice Adebesin

Today I would like to HONOUR MY DAD who taught me to be BOLD, COURAGOUS, USE MY VOICE AND “NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE UNTIL IT IS POSSIBLE” (NELSON MANDELA).

The last few months have been difficult and painful; the days have seemed extremely long. Due to travel bans I was not able travel abroad to say goodbye to my dad or meet with any of my siblings here in England. Having to watch your Dad’s funeral on your phone and in total isolation is on a different level.

My father was originally from South Africa and moved to Zimbabwe during Apartheid. (Apartheid means in South Africa a policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race).

Although my family experienced first-hand the negative social and economic marginalization, my father’s stories have proven to be an inspiration to me. What I recall from them was in spite of the disadvantage they endured in life, they were always prayerful, cheerful and hardworking. Rather than dwell on the difficulties, they promoted love, inclusion and empowered me with a drive to accomplish my full potential. From an early age I understood how to use myself as a powerful instrument for change.

My father helped me to truly believe that not all white people are RACIST because we have been BLESSED to be surrounded by amazing friends and community. However, George Floyd’s death left me with mixed emotion; hurt, disappointment, isolation, exhaustion etc. I was disappointed that some of my white friends had said nothing to me or on social media considering I had shared my concerns about BlackLivesMatter. This was disheartening as I knew in my gut, they don’t get it. Another friend made me understand the importance of how effective you are in your community and workplace, and not the online comments. Going forward, I would like to focus on seeing real positive changes, in policies, attitudes, complacency, conversations etc. In order for every individual to reach their full potential, there must be no fear of discrimination or prejudice and a belief that career opportunities or experience of work is not predetermined by ethnicity, nationality or colour.

Also, as a mother of 2 Black boys, I am trying to raise my boys with the same principles I was raised with. They know their culture, religion and recently I have been teaching them about African history and how Nelson Mandela fought to end RACISIM. What are our children exposed to, what are we teaching our children, what do we all need to do for our CHILDREN, OUR FUTURE?