Another feather on Adam’s honours’ cap

Story by Simon Manda

Terry-Ann Adams added another feather to their honours’ cap as they emerged as one of the finalists in the Arts and Entertainment category of the 18th Mail and Guardian 200 Young South Africans Awards ceremony held last night at a glittering ceremony at The Focus Rooms in Modderfontein, Johannesburg.

These honours are a recognition of 200 top minds and performers, all under 35 years old, nominated from a public call across 15 categories, namely Entertainment, Business & Entrepreneurship, Civil Society, Education, Environment, Film & Media, Health, Law & Justice, Mining & Manufacturing, Politics & Government, Rural Development, Technology and Innovation, Sport, Tourism & Hospitality and lastly, the Editor’s Choice Award that has outstanding achievers personally picked up by the Editor-In-Chief, Ron Derby.

Adam’s Instagram profile identifies them as an author, disabled, genderqueer and parent – roles they specifically play out every day of their life, spanning from book launches to hosting the Terry Talks dialogues on Anchor.fm podcast, advocating for disability rights, identifying as all- inclusive gender personality and being a mother to four-year-old Azrael, and being a wife to Dumisa Mathabathe.

Juggling and traversing these roles of lived experiences has produced media platforms that Adam uses to question, challenge and engage societal guardians to accept alternative narratives to draw and map out solutions for those that seek answers.

Their previous work as a student at the University of Pretoria included lending a regular voice of reason to Radio Tuks and speaking at the inaugural 2013 National Albinism Conference in Johannesburg. By 2015, Adam was an ambassador of Casual Day – the largest disability-rights fundraising initiative in South Africa. This early body of work garnered them a Tribute Award recognition in Media and Communication, a platform that recognises women of excellency in the disability space.

“Being honoured like this is quite remarkable. It’s like a culmination of everything I’ve done since age 21. It’s a big thing for me to be seen and recognised this way,” Adam commented.

On the need to add inclusion to the national youth agenda, they said, “Many youths with disabilities are being left behind on this narrative. For example, we are talking about AI, yet no one is talking about accessible AI. There’s no research on how AI can assist persons with disabilities. This leaves the largest marginalised group behind in a world where we can all contribute.”

“The alienation of persons with disabilities is from a notion of capitalism that believes that disability costs more than we make. That worldview will always position persons with disabilities as liabilities, not strengths. There is a need to move away from how one adds to the market value for profit and ascertain the value of contribution as a person. In these types of conversations, disability gets left far behind.”

Commenting on the outcomes of this year’s edition, Derby pointed out the notable transformation that young people were bringing to the table over the years of the awards.

“This year’s class is really impressive. They’re a great example of how things are changing in our country, even if it feels like it’s happening slowly. Last year’s group was just as amazing as this year’s, and next year’s cohort will be equally amazing!” remarked Derby.

“These young people are talented and skilled and are not afraid to ask tough questions and demand answers. It’s fascinating to see what they’ll do in the future. Even though our country still has problems, we should celebrate the good things too.

We must keep looking for the next visionary who will make a big difference. This event is all about hearing uncomfortable truths and learning from them. It’s so cool that even the alumni from years ago are still involved and making a difference. I’ve only been here for two years, but I hope to continue the legacy of this fantastic event for many more years to come,” he added.

Terry-Ann Adams

AUTHOR AND DISABILITY RIGHTS ADVOCATE

Category
Arts & Entertainment

Age
30

Organisation / Company
Jacana Media
Website

Profile

Terry-Ann Adams, 30, is a writer and disability rights advocate. They is the author of two books, Those Who Live In Cages and White Chalk, a short story collection, both published by Jacana Media. Terry-Ann’s work covers intersectional identity in the post-apartheid context with a special focus on feminism, race, disability and queer expression. “As a disabled person, I advocate for inclusive and equitable access for people with disabilities with a special focus on digital accessibility using my platform as an author.” Those Who Live In Cages was longlisted for the Humanities and Social Sciences Awards (2021) and the Sunday Times Literary Awards (2021) and is critically acclaimed for its portrayal of coloured women and the community of Eldorado Park. White Chalk was awarded Best Fiction Short Stories at the HSS Awards (2023) and stories from the collection have been taught in universities in South Africa and the United States. It has been lauded for its portrayals of coloured identity, queer characters, and its depiction of disabled characters. Terry-Ann is passionate about digital accessibility for disabled South Africans (ensuring that all websites are accessible to all), mental health, and awareness of albinism and autism as a person with albinism who is also autistic. They also uses social media to raise awareness and often speaks on panels, locally and internationally. Terry-Ann would like to see a South Africa that is more inclusive for everyone where barriers to access are taken away for black and brown women, gender-diverse people, disabled people and queer people.

List your educational background – qualifications and institutions?

BHCS (Honours), History, University of Pretoria
BA Humanities, University of Pretoria

Any awards or achievements in your field?

Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) Awards 2023 Best Fiction: Short Stories for White Chalk
Longlisted for the HSS Awards in 2021 forThose Who Live In Cages
Longlisted for the Sunday Times Literary Awards 2021 also forThose Who Live In Cages.

One childhood memory that has spurred you to such levels of achievement?

I had to write a short story for my grade six English assignment. I wanted to use fiction and humour to write about being disabled and struggling to get into a mainstream primary school and that resulted in my first memoir. I remember calling it The Eye Confusion. From that day, I knew that I could write and that I wanted to write words that could change the world.

Advice to your younger self?

Just keep swinging. The fight doesn’t look worth it but it will be, just trust me.

What would you like South Africa to look like in five years?

Short answer: more inclusive for everyone. I would like to see barriers to access taken away for black and brown women, gender-diverse people, disabled people, and queer people.