For Our Rights/We Will Rise Cultural Activism and Contesting the Collapsing City

Abstract

State-sanctioned corruption, repression, and violence shape Zimbabwe's past as well as present-day political-economic predicaments. Because of this situation, it is not uncommon for analysts to predict collapse for Zimbabwe. Such predictions have limited utility, and therefore, this article examines the micro-level activities of artistically inclined citizens that resist collapse and recast the terrain by maximizing the productivity of the city. The focus is on cultural activism – that is, arts-oriented engagements occurring beyond the boundaries of both state sponsorship and formally structured organizations. In Harare, the strength and influence surrounding artistic expressions rest in their abilities to inform and spark activism by focusing on lived realities as well as on the operations of the state conditioning those realities.