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True to the Pan-African passions of his father, well-known US TV host Sal Masekela is doing his bit to uplift the youths of the coastal west African country of Liberia, racked by years of civil war and corruption.
The sportscaster, actor and musician (his band is named Alekesam – which is Masekela spelt backwards) has announced he is working with surfing merchandise brand Mami Wata and surf therapy organisation Waves for Change to build a clubhouse for young surfers in Harper, Liberia, a coastal town between the Atlantic Ocean and the Hoffman River.
It’s much more than a clubhouse though, Sal told City Press this week.
The surf clubhouse will create a focal point for this growing surf community. A safe, shared space where they can gain skills in the water and in life.
Since Waves for Change began working in Harper, tackling the legacy of violence, poverty and conflict on its youths, surfing has become hugely popular, with regular surfing competitions held at the mouth of the river.
“The ocean builds great human beings,” Sal says, sharing his love of surfing, a bug that bit him as a child.
According to Sal, his jazz legend father taught him the beauty of the entire continent and marvelled at the magic and diversity of its cultures. He says his father dreamt of an X Games type event where people from across the continent would compete in indigenous games on land and sea and showcase their unique abilities.
According to Sal, something as simple as learning to fall down and get back up on a skateboard or negotiating the power of the ocean to the point you can learn to ride a wave can expand the manner in which a child looks at the potential of their overall lives.
“The Harper Sliders are more than just a surf club,” says Masekela, “It’s a community-owned space where children are healing themselves, learning skills and creating a whole new way of life through surfing.”
The clubhouse is being funded by a Kickstarter campaign that has already raised R250 000 of its R365 000 goal with two weeks to go. If all goes according to plan, the young surfers of Harper will be using their new base by August.
Meanwhile, the legacy of Bra Hugh continues to grow, with the family announcing that celebrated Ghana-born architect David Adjaye has designed a pavilion that will grace a garden of remembrance in Johannesburg, “a place to gather, reflect and celebrate the life and impact of Hugh Ramapolo Masekela”, says his sister Barbara Masekela.
The pavilion will be unveiled by his family in June. “African monuments are a place of gathering and reflection. They help us inform the importance of our ancestors, our heritage and culture,” says Adjaye about the cultural significance of the design.
The pavilion will be carved with a message from Bra Hugh’s family and will house various symbolic stones that represent the many places Masekela travelled within the continent while he was in exile.
