Aphiwe Ngowapi is a journalist who has written for Grocott’s Mail. She has previously presented and produced radio shows for Rhodes Music Radio, as well as being the head of news in 2024. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Journalism and Media Studies at the University of Rhodes. Her research interests include subaltern counterpublics, citizen journalism, and community networks.

An essay examining protest culture in Makhanda as a response to deep-seated inequality and ongoing service delivery failures, particularly in relation to land and chronic water shortages. It argues that for many Black communities, protest becomes a primary mode of expressive freedom.

Drawing on scholarship and local reporting, it asks how repeated protests become invisible to more affluent audiences and what that invisibility means for democracy.