Latest news with #DenisHurleyCentre
The Citizen
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Citizen
DHC to host free screening of God's Work
A MOVIE inspired by the homeless in eThekwini, debuting at the 46th Durban International Film Festival, will be screened for free at the Denis Hurley Centre (DHC) today, at 13:00, and at Watercrest Ster-Kinekor on Sunday, July 27, at 17:00. The film is already receiving rave reviews. An audience member at the SA premiere on Sunday at Suncoast confirmed the impact that God's Work elicits. 'It makes me feel incredibly uncomfortable … in all the right ways,' said the viewer. God's Work, billed as 'a portrait of resilience, a meditation on memory, and an unflinching gaze into the unseen lives of those discarded by the world', is directed by Durban-based award-winning director and writer, Michael James, and produced by Sithabile Mkhize alongside co-producer Marco Orsin. James was inspired to make God's Work while volunteering at DHC during the lockdown. The DHC, working with the eThekwini Municipality and other NGOs and faith communities, organised emergency shelters for 1500 people across Durban during the pandemic. The centre itself hosted 100 sick and disabled homeless men whom James spent time chatting to, and it inspired him to tell their stories on film. Also Read: SA film showcases Durban beachfront globally 'The film should make audiences feel discomfort,' said Dr Raymond Perrier, director of the DHC. 'And yes, something must be done. Leaders need to speak out, and the politicians and religious leaders need to listen, and respond, and support all of us endeavouring to make a difference.' The film is set in the heart of Durban. A derelict building offers a fragile sanctuary to a group of homeless men surviving on society's margins. Blurring the line between reality and fiction, the film follows Simphiwe, played by SAFTA award-winning actor Thobani Nzuza (eHostela, Uzalo, DiepCity), and his crew as they navigate addiction, poverty, performative politics, and the lure of fleeting fame. With Simphiwe fighting demons only he can see, and moving performances by a strong supporting cast, including Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Mncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Khowa, the film is a raw exploration of survival, brotherhood, and the human desire to be seen before disappearing. 'This is not just a film about homelessness, it's a story about power, loss, resistance — and what it costs to stay human in a world that's abandoned its soul,' said Mkhize. For more from Berea Mail, follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok. Click to subscribe to our newsletter – here
IOL News
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- IOL News
'God's Work': voices from the streets of Durban
Simphiwe Thobani Nzuza, from left, Thobani Mbulelo Radeba and Khaya Zenzo Msomi in a scene from the movie. Image: Supplied 'When you're on the streets, people look through you. I'm tired of being invisible.' The words above are from a homeless character in God's Work - the home-grown Durban film that opened this week at the Durban International Film Festival. But though they were spoken by an actor, Mbulelo Radebe, they could easily have been the actual words of one of the 6 000 or so homeless men and women in Durban. If the size of that number shocks you, it is because the quotation is very true: homeless people in our city are invisible. God's Work was written and directed by DHS-alumnus Michael James in his first full-length feature film. James was inspired to make it, while volunteering at the Denis Hurley Centre (DHC) during lockdown. It was a time when the DHC, was working with the municipality and other NGOs to organise emergency shelters for 1 500 people across Durban, as well as hosting 100 sick and disabled homeless men in our own building. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading James spent time getting to know the homeless men in residence. A few of them started telling him about an idea they had for a story, and, to their delight, he worked with them to make a 20-minute video which they conceived and wrote, called No Kings on the Streets, which can be viewed on the DHC YouTube channel. The more James chatted with them, the more moved he was by their own stories and their feeling that no one was interested in hearing their voices. From this original interaction, the film God's Work was inspired. Five years later it has received the red-carpet treatment at its world premiere at the CineCentre at SunCoast. Present were not only the filmmakers and actors (many of them graduates of DUT's drama programme) but also homeless men who acted as paid consultants during the filming process to advise James on how to present the story in an authentic way. The film portrays a "warts and all" view of homeless life in Durban – drug addiction, the temptation to hopelessness, police violence, exploitation by politicians, religious platitudes, and well-meaning but inept interventions by do-gooders. In the face of all this, there is a resilience and a camaraderie between the six main characters. Although the film is catching the interest of Hollywood-types, it does not give in to a happy-ever-after ending. The director explains that he wants the film to be an experience of walking alongside the homeless men – so it is sometimes slow-paced, sometimes highly chaotic; does not give us a tidy solution, but leaves us with a sense of unease, and questions to be answered. One young woman at the opening night commented in tears: 'This film leaves me very uncomfortable; but in a good way.' Executive Producer Toni Monty commented: 'It is not a film about homelessness. It is a film about a group of fascinating men, who find themselves homeless.' And that is why the quote at the beginning is so poignant. As someone who works every day with a group of booksellers all of whom were once homeless, I know from my own experience that these men and women have profound backstories and inspiring dreams for the future. Perhaps that is why they make such good booksellers. They know the power of a good story; but they also know how many stories go unheard or unread. Before we set up the Street Lit bookselling project, the DHC worked (with Independent Media, the publishers of the POST) to empower homeless people as newspaper sellers. I remember listening to Lindani, the vendor who was working at the robots at the top of Swapo Road (Broadway) in Durban North. He explained that he had stood begging at those same robots for years; then, when he became a newspaper seller, things had changed. 'It is not that I make any more money now than when I was begging,' he explained. 'But before I would watch as people sped past me, praying that the lights would stay green, or refusing to look at me if they were caught by the red light. Now, I see the same cars on the same school runs or commutes to work, and yet something has changed. Now, they actually look forward to a red light, so they can put down the window and greet me. And even if they don't buy a newspaper, they have made a difference in my day: because they have seen me; they have recognised me as a fellow human being.' There is a strange irony that homelessness is so visible as a problem and yet homeless people themselves feel invisible. The recent response of eThekwini Municipality – despite the positive work they did during the Covid-19 lockdown – is to try and make them even more invisible. Once again, they are picking people up off the streets and dropping them far from the city. And their latest expensive plan is to relocate some of the city's homeless people to a disused prison site in Lower Illovo. A kind of out-of-sight, out-of-mind philosophy, which feels almost certain to fail. There are promises of ongoing support for the homeless once they have been relocated – but eThekwini have rarely followed through on this in the past. Meanwhile, there is no thought on their need to find purpose, and earn money, however modest, to stay alive. And all the while, there are government buildings in our inner city which are empty, that it would make far more sense to utilise. Our work at the DHC – and the work of iCare and other members of the Durban Homeless Network – is not about making homeless people invisible. We start by helping homeless people in practical ways by serving meals and providing healthcare. Then we also make sure that they have IDs, that they are registered as voters, that they have a chance to speak for themselves on radio and TV; and now, portrayed by actors, their stories are being seen on film. There will be a free screening of God's Work this Saturday, July 26, at 1pm at the DHC and all are welcome to join us. Email: news@ for more information. We will have a chance to celebrate the homeless men who appear as extras in the film, and also hear from the producer, Sithabile Mkhize as well as the director. Importantly, after the screening, there will be a chance for people to talk in small groups with the homeless people present and hear their voices directly. Even if you cannot make it on Saturday, you have many other chances to hear about what life is like on the streets of Durban. Just speak to any of our band of Street Lit booksellers whom you will find in bright green shirts across the city: in malls, at theatres, at Botanic Gardens and other pop-up venues. It is through truly listening to the stories of others – on film or in real life – and being open to what they tell us even when it is not a Hollywood ending that change can happen. The life of the person telling the story can be transformed – and so can the life of each of us when we have the privilege to listen. There are several more DIFF screenings of God's Work: - Saturday, July 26, at 1pm at the DHC (free) - Sunday, July 27, at 5pm at Ster-Kinekor, Watercrest - Saturday, August 2, at 12 noon at the Bioscope, Johannesburg - Sunday, August 3, at 12 noon at the Labia Theatre, Cape Town Illa Thompson Image: Supplied Illa Thompson co-ordinates the Denis Hurley Centre Street Lit project and is the DHC publicist. She owns Publicity Matters, a Durban based PR agency. ** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. THE POST
The Citizen
18-07-2025
- General
- The Citizen
Denis Hurley Centre mourns passing of three contributors
THE past few months has seen the Denis Hurley Centre (DHC) family embroiled in bereavement, following the passing of their valuable contributors. Sarah Kearney died at the age of 55 after a protracted illness. She was the niece of DHC founder, Paddy Kearney, one of the three children of his late brother Jack. Sarah was described as an invaluable source of insights for the PhD written about Paddy. DHC director Raymond Perrier said, 'Saffura Khan died of a heart attack aged 67 after undergoing surgery. Saffura has been one of our most committed and versatile Muslim partners. The fact that she was blind from birth, and a passionate activist for the rights of the disabled, meant that she also brought new insights into our own work. It was in part through her inspiration and gentle cajoling that over the years we could engage a blind tour guide, set up an empowerment project for deaf young adults, and ensure that wheelchair users could be staff members and volunteers.' Also read: Denis Hurley Centre Street Store serves success Saffura had been a patron of DHC's sister organisation, the Napier Centre for Healing, as was Bishop Dino Gabriel who has died at the age of 69. 'Sadly, a few months ago, Dino discovered that he had cancer and, after that, his decline was swift. He came to South Africa from Italy in 1987 as a Catholic priest and a Consolata missionary; then later in life he became an Anglican, an Anglican priest and then an Anglican bishop. 'During the four years that he was our local Anglican bishop, Dino was a regular visitor to the DHC and encouraged his clergy to share actively in our ministry. Then in his retirement, he approached us to 'ask' if he could be a volunteer. It was deeply moving to see him come in as humble 'Fr Dino' and happily spend hours attentively in conversation, in fluent Zulu, with our homeless guests,' said Perrier. 'We echo the words of his friend Cardinal Napier who, very fittingly, extended his condolences to Dino's three families: his religious family of Consolata missionaries, his episcopal family in the Anglican dioceses of Zululand and Natal, and his biological family comprising maDlamini his wife of 33 years, their four children and six grandchildren.' For more from Berea Mail, follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also check out our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok. Click to subscribe to our newsletter – here At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
TimesLIVE
18-06-2025
- General
- TimesLIVE
Anglicans mourn death of former bishop of KZN Dino Gabriel
The Anglican Church is mourning the death of former bishop of Natal Dino Gabriel at the weekend. Gabriel died at Netcare Parklands Hospital in Overport on Saturday. The Italian moved to South Africa in 1987 and over the years endeared himself to many due to his proficiency in isiZulu. In 1992 Gabriel married Nobelungu. Tensions within the clergy forced Gabriel to resign in 2019 as head of the church before his retirement in September 2020. His retirement came before a synod, a meeting of high-ranking clergymen every three years. At the time Gabriel was reported to say his resignation stemmed from threats, character assassination and racists remarks over his leadership style. The archbishop of the church, Thabo Makgoba, said the early retirement stemmed from 'financial pressures'. Anglican Diocese of Natal Bishop Nkosinathi Ndwandwe confirmed Gabriel's death on Sunday. 'Please pray for Mrs Nobelungu Gabriel and the family at this time of grief. Our heartfelt condolences to the Gabriel family. May he rise in glory,' said Ndwandwe. The Denis Hurley Centre in Durban also paid tribute to Gabriel on Saturday. It said Gabriel came to South Africa from Italy as a catholic priest and a Consolata missionary and later became an Anglican bishop in Zululand and then in Natal. The centre credited Gabriel for his frequent visits, including his most recent in March, where he often conversed with homeless guests in isiZulu. A memorial will be held at the Durban Exhibition Centre on Friday.
IOL News
24-05-2025
- IOL News
The plight of Durban's homeless: a call for compassionate solutions
It is not a crime to be homeless or to be poor, says the writer. Image: U-Turn Facebook AS THE nights become colder in Durban, I notice that more and more people are contacting the Denis Hurley Centre, increasingly conscious of the homeless on our streets and asking how they can help. That is very positive in a city where sadly many government officials seem much less concerned about the plight of our homeless fellow-citizens. Recently, the municipality has yet again been pursuing a strategy of "cleaning the streets". In reality, this means harassing and molesting homeless people so they move from where they are – only for them to pop up in another part of the city. The group that was in Albert Park has now re-emerged in Glenwood. But the group in Albert Park was only there because a few months before they were chased out from the railway lines. The problem is never solved, it is just moved around; and it is made worse because people lose their few belongings, their medicines and their IDs. We know from our clinic team of at least six people who have died as a result of the current strategy. The positive concern that I see from the general public reminds me of the time during the Covid-19 lockdown, when the people of Durban responded generously to help the homeless. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Just one story among many: at the time, I was helping to run a pop-up shelter on the beachfront behind the Elangeni Hotel. One day a young Indian couple drove up to the gate in a smart car. It turned out they were from Grosvenor Court, the apartment complex that overlooked our homeless site. I was ready to respond to what I had expected to be their complaints about bringing down the tone of the neighbourhood. Instead, they had come to find out where they could help and returned the next day with burgers and chips for all our 200 residents. During Covid-19, the eThekwini led the country in its response to care for, feed and house the city's homeless community in record time. They listened to and worked with NGOs, local businesses, faith communities and homeless people themselves. Together we created a number of shelters, all in the city centre, all of manageable size, with social workers and health professionals, and a sense of care for these marginalised citizens. I remember being shocked and delighted to hear from some of the metro police who were working on the city's response, that their own perspective on homeless people had changed by the opportunity to interact with them one-to-one. Their job now was to protect the homeless, not to harass them. All of this was in stark contrast to Cape Town. There, city officials ignored the advice of NGOs and refused to speak to the homeless. They spent a lot of money on a massive, unfriendly shelter, far outside the city for over 1 000 people to which they had to force people to move. And within a few weeks it had collapsed because most of the residents left it as soon as they could and returned to the streets of the city. Scroll forward five years and eThekwini is now planning to repeat Cape Town's mistake. When challenged about their current strategy of pushing the homeless from area to area, city officials reply that that will be solved when they open their planned Sakithemba site for the homeless in Illovo. This, they claim, will host (or rather "hold") over 1 000 homeless people who will be moved there by the police. But it is not a crime to be homeless or to be poor. The city will not be able to detain people there against their will and inevitably homeless people will come back to the CBD. Tens of millions of Rand will have been spent and nothing achieved. The reason is that 85% of the people who are on the streets of Durban are young men from rural KZN who have moved to the city in search of work. eThekwini's own research repeatedly confirms this and yet they believe that people will voluntarily stay in a place where there are no jobs and with no easy transport to the CBD. The municipality claims that people will stay there because they will be offering social work, training and healthcare. But those same officials have failed to do that for the 400 people who are in the sites that they have been running in the CBD for the past five years. In fact, the women's shelter, set up by eThekwini during Covid-19, no longer has functioning lights or showers or security – and that is a mere 1km from city hall. It seems optimistic to think that eThekwini will suddenly provide services for 1 000+ people who will be out of sight 40km away. The irony is that a better solution is staring them in the face. It is what was started during the lockdown. More-over it is the strategy pursued, if not always consistently, by other metros across South Africa. They do not create large dumping grounds outside their cities, but instead smaller, manageable shelters within the CBDs since that is where people want to be in the hope of finding work. In the best examples, these shelters do not just provide a place to sleep but also constructive support from professional social workers (not interns) whose job is, within 6 to 12 months, to enable someone to move on from the shelter to work or to reunite them with their families. And the best shelters are funded by government but run by empathetic NGOs who, unlike government officials, can spend time building trust with the residents and listening to them. There is no shortage of empty government buildings in the CBD that could be used. But a building is only the start. Effective shelters do not just provide a roof, but rather create a temporary home where someone can turn their life around and re-enter society. Such a strategy is not cheap but, as other metros have shown, it can be effective. The eThekwini's current strategy with police and private security and the plans for a massive out-of-town holding centre is also not cheap and is definitely not effective. When they see the problem of homelessness in Durban, people cry 'something must be done!' But what is the point of just doing 'something' when it patently does not work. Let us instead work together so that something good can be achieved. Dr Raymond Perrier Image: Supplied
