Pascal Mirindi, a 25-year-old activist from Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, grew up surrounded by the violent fall-out of the Rwandan genocide of 1994, which spilled over into the DRC. But at age 17, when Pascal joined a peaceful demonstration in the streets of Goma, it showed him another way to fight. Experiencing non-violent resistance changed his life and set him on a path to protect his country's ecosystems from the greed of oil companies. But – being confronted constantly with police repression, threats, and even forced exile – he wonders if it's time to step back or time to step up…

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Before the month of love comes to a close, we wanted to share one of our favorite episodes from the archive.

Dating is complicated. Not to mention dating on the apps! And for LGBTQI+ folks on the African continent, where many countries criminalise queerness, it’s even MORE complicated. We asked reporters in Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kenya and Namibia to share how they navigate the highs and lows of seeking romance, community and friendship online. Despite all the pitfalls, love calls out to all of us.

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Abiodun Oyeniran lost his sight completely at age 21. At 28, he finally makes it into the University of Lagos, only to realise the campus is not equipped to fully support the needs of blind students. So, Abiodun becomes an accidental activist, creating a grassroots system that helps visually impaired students navigate exams for 5 years—until the university decides his solution is a threat to their policy and shuts it down.

Show Notes

Sources:

• 2017 National Policy on Inclusive Education
• 2018 Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities Prohibition Act
• 2023 Study on Nigerian Visually Impaired Students’ Computer Skills
• The Tweet

Acknowledgements:

This episode would not be possible without support from Fondation CHANEL, Ford Foundation, and Luminate.

Support the show

We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.