Keep it Constitutional

I attended the launch of an animated educational series for high school students at the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg.  The court is located on Constitution Hill, a historic location where many well-known South African leaders were jailed and tried.  The campaign being celebrated is an educational resource for school children, because preliminary research revealed that only 51% of South Africans were aware of the Constitution and the related Bill of Rights.  Of those who were aware of their rights, most learned from the school children in their families. 

Thoko Mpumlwana, Bill Cisco, Gina Mhlophe, Suzi Mill, Juliet Perumal - we are posing for a photo after the launch of #Keepitconstitutional.

Bill and me standing in front of the dancing giant girl!

The South African Human Rights Commission teamed up with animators, researchers, schools and the Human Rights Foundation to develop and launch the series throughout the nation.  The information is a bit more detailed than our American "Schoolhouse Rock", but I was reminded of the cartoons who taught us about bills on capital hill and conjunctions, etc.  As my American colleague Bill and I sang "Conjunction, junction, what's your function...." we were met with some pretty funny looks from those around us.  

You can learn more about the animated series and the related teaching resources at this link.  You can also see exactly what your rights are, in case you are South African, or living in South Africa.   https://www.keepitconstitutional.co.za/