Date :

08 September 2009

Time :

12:30 – 13:30

Presenters :

Dr Sharlene Swartz and Professor Arvin Bhana, with an introduction by Professor Linda Richter

You are cordially invited to join us at the launch of the recently published book Teenage Tata: Voices of young fathers in South Africa by Sharlene Swartz & Arvin Bhana (HSRC Press).

The book provides a fresh and in-depth portrait of impoverished young South African men who became fathers while teenagers. It provides space for their articulate and impassioned voices to be heard amidst the outcry against the absence of fathers, and offers insights into young fathers’ personal, emotional, financial and cultural struggles as they come to terms with fatherhood.

The study highlights young fathers’ strong sense of responsibility; poignant accounts of emotional engagement with their children and the women in their lives; the motivating power of young fathers’ own absent fathers on their parenting intentions; their desire for sex- and relationship-education from male family members and their clear recognition of the help they need. Based on a multi-interview qualitative study in the informal settlements and townships around Cape Town and Durban, this monograph offers methodological innovations and showcases how social network interviews offer great potential for both research and intervention.

About the Authors:

Dr Sharlene Swartz is a sociologist and researcher at the Child, Youth, Family and Social Development research programme of the Human Sciences Research Council, and a visiting research fellow at the Centre for Commonwealth Education at the University of Cambridge.

Professor Arvin Bhana is a psychologist, the Deputy Executive Director at the Child, Youth, Family and Social Development research programme of the Human Sciences Research Council, and an adjunct associate professor in the School of Psychology at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

NB: Please note that participation in the seminar and workshop is limited. We are particularly interested to attract policy makers and practitioners to the workshop. Seminar attendees will each receive a comprehensive summary of Teenage Tata, while a complimentary copy of the book will be offered to each NGO, CBO or institutional representative attending the workshop (limited to one copy per organisation).

Kindly RSVP by 4 September 2009

Venues

HSRC Cape Town: 12th Floor, Plein Park Building (Opposite Revenue Office), Plein Street, Cape Town. Contact Ngxubaza Vuyo, on +27 (0)21 466 8099

HSRC Durban: 1st floor boardroom, 750 Francois Road, Ntuthuko Junction, PODS 5 and 6, Cato Manor, Durban. Contact Johannes Khoele on +27 (0)31 242 5400 

HSRC Pretoria: Video Conference Room, 1st floor, HSRC Library, HSRC Building, 134 Pretorius Street Pretoria. Contact Arlene Grossberg on +27 (0)12 302 2801 or Baby Twala on +27 (0)12 302 2368