The Real Network The Ma(i)de Sessions

The Ma(i)de Sessions

Domestic workers and cleaners occupy a unique position in a society. They are simultaneously the most ubiquitous and invisible among us. They are ever-present in our personal, professional and public spaces but often go largely undetected. These women have the potential to be the most powerful and astute social commentators as they hold a mirror to ourselves, to our children, and to our fellow citizens. Be a fly on the wall as we gain their unique perspectives on an interesting range of matters that characterise South African society.
Weekly English South Africa Society & Culture · Health & Fitness
69 Episodes
1 – 20

The Audition

In an interesting (but not surprising) turn of events this week, CliffCentral's very own Jane goes from guest to presenter extraordinaire. Join the ladies as they decide to get Jane in their corner... or is it Jane's corner??? Talk about flipping the unscript!
26 Oct 2017 47 min

The Other Side of the Coin

Loice Chaza has been able to move from one living wage to another. Hear how she used to hustle before she earned a reasonable wage and what her dreams look like now that she has some financial breathing room. Whilst last week's show walked us through how to implement a…
19 Oct 2017 48 min

Being Fair There

Founder of one of Johannesburg's most beloved coffee companies, Jonathan Robinson, is in studio to tell us how he got his 40-strong staff body onto living wages. We get his take and approach on equity, bonuses, overtime, training and more.
12 Oct 2017 46 min

How Heroines are MA.DE

How much could you achieve if your housekeeper knew how to drive? If there was an accident in your pool could your housekeeper swim to your rescue and administer first aid? Does your housekeeper know how to defend herself and safeguard your home against neighborhood crime? These questions and more…
5 Oct 2017 38 min

The Better Blacks

The tensions between social classes of the same cultural or racial groups is no new thing. This is most felt around the cleaners in our corporate offices or at the mall, and of course with the domestic workers in our private homes. Besides the discomfort of having to give orders…
28 Sep 2017 38 min

The Jane Factor

If you've hung around the CliffCentral Headquarters then you've probably met Jane. And once you have, you may feel like you've known her forever. But there's plenty more to this force of nature than meets the eye, and it comes as no surprise that her middle name means 'she who…
21 Sep 2017 1 hour

Cross-Border Convos

Felicia and Sally left Zimbabwe 15 and 12 years ago respectively. They came to share with us how and where they started when they got to South Africa, who helped them, and what their futures look like from where they’re standing. From man drama to expiry dates to black tax,…
14 Sep 2017 35 min

School's in!

Simphiwe Mthethwa is in studio to talk about the Ma(i)de Sessions and to educate us on creating authentic content. Turns out the thing even more important than taking back the land is taking back our stories. Plus find out why South African audiences deserve better from the entertainment and media…
7 Sep 2017 59 min

Keep your Ubuntu?

UBUNTU - 'A person is a person through other people'. Although beautiful in theory, many have argued its misuse and sometimes abuse, like how Africans might have practiced this when the settlers first reached our shores and that is what got us colonised. Can Ubuntu be used to hold someone’s…
31 Aug 2017 38 min

The Game of Life

Mbali wrote a poem about domestic workers. Turns out it's about all of us, and the good old game of life. If you fancy a reality check then here it is.
24 Aug 2017 12 min

MADE Reversal

Award-winning copywriter and comedian, Amanda ‘part-of-the-furniture’ Horwitz, turns the table on MADE co-founder Tuliza Sindi to spark some much-needed productive reflection on the growth, progress, vision, potential and mark of the company thus far.
17 Aug 2017 44 min

In-her-itance

After a year Lerato is back in studio to take her story a generation further. Lerato's mom was a domestic worker. Sadly, both her parents passed when she was just 10 and she was adopted by her mom's white employers. Through her journey between extremely different South African worlds she…
10 Aug 2017 59 min

A Gate in Time

Robert Botha is a middle-aged white South African male who wrote a poem about a special person, probably a domestic worker, standing outside a gate in time. Don't miss his pearls of wisdom on identity, connection, servanthood, and the power of silence. Enlightened doesn't even cut it!
27 Jul 2017 51 min

Worker Stories

When last have you had someone speak for you or tell your story? It can be entertaining or flattering at the best or inaccurate and even insulting at worst. Workerstories.org decided to collect the stories of those often spoken for, in their own words, through creative literature. What more unbeatable…
20 Jul 2017 17 min

At Your Gate

Today we review a poem called 'At Your Gate' by Robert Botha. 'White male' can appear in many ways to be the opposite of 'domestic worker' but his piece is nothing short of haunting and insightful. A true testament to the beauty and complexity of the South African artist.
13 Jul 2017 34 min

Outrepreneur

Nelly's always been an intrapreneur. Intrapreneurship is the act of behaving like an entrepreneur while working within a large organisation. Lately however, she's taken it a step further and is looking to gradually start her own cleaning business. Guess what that's called... outrepreneurship? Whatever the term, Nelly knows more than…
6 Jul 2017 27 min

Mind Maze

In our second instalment of "what would South Africa be without 'help'?" (since it is a question we are always asked), the hosts explore a range of hypotheticals in a mind-warping conversation with many interesting twists and turns. Talk about a mental workout... phew!
29 Jun 2017 24 min

Matopia?

What might South Africa look like if 'help' was re-envisioned? Tuliza takes it a step further with a news broadcast from 2074. Fifty bucks says you push replay... more than once!
22 Jun 2017 10 min

The Commodities Market: Hope

Is hope a sellable product? Is it a skill? Is it both? Either way, some seem to have it and some don’t. Better yet, some seem to know how to use it, while others don’t know where to begin to find it. So people sell it to us in the…
1 Jun 2017 44 min

The Answer is a Question

What does your domestic worker know about you that nobody else does? A slightly awkward question for us all, no doubt, but we recently asked it to a large group of 14-year old boys at St. John's College... and truly remarkable things happened. We've invited their teacher Lizzy to chat…
25 May 2017 47 min
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