Meet Raeez White | Afrikaans and debating teacher, writer, volunteering and social change activist.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Raeez White and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Raeez, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Saying ‘Awe’ is probably the most South African experience, after Pap and Boerewors.

Aged 12, I remember asking my mother why Afrikaans Slang is not a part of our 11 official languages, she responded in saying Raeez, “you weren’t born saying awe, your father taught you that”. To many South Africans the word is a positive greeting. To my Coloured or Khoisan people, it is a greeting, its a laughter, a yes, a smile, or a sigh or intimidation. It all depends on the facial expression, over used? It is one of the few words we call part of our language.

After secondary school I applied for state funding to create the I’amsan language app, said as an Affirmation, the journey taught me that language is more than just a few spoken words. Language is to live and experience life itself. While I still look forward to creating the app, my business grew into understanding we have lost our identity, and that I have to first build back the idea of what it means to be human, in behaviour, before adding on a culture.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The l’amsan Communications company, an umbrella company that’s intended to give ordinary people access to 9 of their most basic needs, in turn creating jobs, drastically improving their well-being and an outlook towards life. After planing the app; I realised the biggest factor in one’s success is the early childhood sociology that defines your adult life today.

Excitingly, the biggest challenge is start up capital and with this my short term goals are to start medium enterprises to employ people in the surrounding communities, saving up to buy video equipment to get out the columns of “Well Being” as a TV series. And while I do spend my time researching on first world standards of living, my long term goals is that I would like to study overseas at a university level, Urban development and Sociology, to academically improve the ideas that I have to build my Province, its towns, townships and rural areas into a first world experience.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

South Africa has one of the most diverse transportation systems in the world, and at the centre of this is its 14 seater mini bus taxi association, it allows you to see Africa on the move and realise the possibilities within us.

The province of Limpopo is the most diverse in culture, with a mix of Afrikaner; Balobedu; Colored/Khoisan; Indian; Sepedi; Shangaan; Venda; and Zimbabwean-Shona people. I would advise the visiting friend to a ‘taxi rank’ (the mini bus terminal meeting point) where they would get to see us rich in community, diversity, entrepreneurial spirits, grilled food, and a love for our ever evolving house music, currently known as Amapiano.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

A person within my community feared for dealing in drugs, I send a Shoutout to him! After we ended up walking together one night. Instead of judging him, I explained why taking drugs or selling drugs makes sense. This allowed him to break away his persona and open up about his childhood experience, his dreams and relationship with his parents, his children and his girlfriend. In tears about his difficult past and present, I told him about my business ideas of creating local jobs in manufacturing, and columns of Well Being that will positively change everybody in our townships lives for a better or more meaningful South Africa. Again I send a Shoutout to him, because he wants to stop and he encouraged me to bring the positive change.

Also, the books ‘Rich dad Poor dad’ by Robert T. Kiyosaki, as I went through a similar story being raised with limiting beliefs. And the second book is, ‘Capitalist Nigga’ by Chika Onyeani, that made financial conversations much more culturally relatable and how we can use our power of community to change our reality.

Instagram: raeezwhite