They say education has a single path,
A paved road with fences and gates,
Rules marked by bells and registers,
Grades like shackles
— Pass, fail, repeat.
But we know different.
Our classroom has no walls,
It’s carved by rivers, painted by stars,
Our lessons carried by winds that speak of ancestors.
We learn by living, By questioning, By being.
Yet here comes the BELA Bill,
Wearing the mask of progress,
A law that claims to protect, But seeks to control
— To cage the wild wonder of learning.
They tell us every child must sit still,
Follow the same script,
Memorize, comply, conform.
And if not?
They want neighbors to report us,
“Turn in the rebels with free minds,” They say. Spy on those who dare to believe
That a child’s purpose is sacred,
Not stamped by state approval.
But we are Indigenous,
Born from the soil that remembers freedom. We teach by the cycles of the moon,
By planting seeds — in gardens and minds alike.
We see talents bloom at their own pace,
Not by the ticking of clocks Or the marking of tests.
This law? It threatens our right to raise creators,
To birth dreamers,
To guide spirits that dance to rhythms you cannot hear.
It tells us we are not enough,
That our wisdom must be regulated,
Our children’s futures audited.
We say no.
We refuse your chains.
We will not silence the voice of freedom in our homes.
We will not trade the birthright of self-directed learning For the illusion of progress.
To the lawmakers who try to break us: Understand this —
The fire of Indigenous knowledge does not die.
It rises, It teaches, And it will forever be free.
I am Zamakhuba Radebe
Note to reader:
The Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) was enacted into law in South Africa in September 2024. The BELA Bill brought many changes including: School admissions and the language of instruction now regulated by government; Home schooling regulated; Mandated assessments required of home schooling families; Jail time for parents who fail to ensure their child is in school; Grade R, for four and five-year-olds, is the new compulsory school starting level – a year earlier than prior.