Strike a Rock

Showings

Main Theater - Michigan Theater Sun, Mar 25, 2018 12:15 PM
Film Info
Event Type:Feature in Competition
Release Year:2017
Premiere Status:U.S. PREMIERE
Cast/Crew Info
Director:Aliki Saragas

Description

In a deeply personal journey, Strike a Rock follows two South African activists who take on the infamous platinum mining company, Lonmin Plc. Primrose Sonti and Thumeka Magwangqana are grandmothers and best friends living in Nkaneng, Marikana, an informal settlement in rural South Africa that sprang up around a mine operated by Lonmin Plc. This was the company at the heart of the Marikana Massacre of 2012, when 37 striking mineworkers were killed by police. After the massacre shakes their poverty-stricken community, the women lead a historic fight for justice. Apart from underpaying workers, Lonmin has consistently reneged on legal obligations to provide housing and infrastructure to local people affected by the mine. Since the 2012 massacre, the living conditions that caused the strike have only gotten worse—and this is what Primrose and Thumeka are fighting against. These two inspiring women formed a women’s organization, Sikhala Sonke (We Cry Together), after their friend, Paulina, was killed by police. Over time we see them grow into two different leaders in the search for social and economic justice. Can these two women take on the goliath composed of high-powered enemies that appear to collude against the people of Marikana?

Additional Information

Sponsor: Destination Ann Arbor Education Partner: University of Michigan School of Social Work