|
Meet Gill Bosonetto - Veteran South African Journalist
Now Mars Hill Counselor
by Joshua Keller
Gill Bosonetto
|
Threatening phone calls kept South African journalist Gill Bosonetto constantly aware that she could be arrested or lose press privileges for reporting on the country's newly founded labor unions. In the early 1980's she was 22 years old and was covering some of the most controversial issues of the time. Every political piece she wrote was required to have her name and phone number printed with the story.
Bosonetto, who today is Director of Career Counseling and Retention at Mars Hill College, eventually choose to leave and pursue a life in a new country.
Bosonetto grew up in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. A rigid system of apartheid - or racial segregation -- was in place at that time. Blacks had limited rights, and whites were also restricted on the jobs that they could have. Social and political mixing of races was totally prohibited until the late 1980's.
The government was very restrictive and didn't allow television into the country until 1976 because of the fear of international influence. Even when television was allowed, it was state-controlled and heavily censored. Discrimination was everywhere and in everything that the ruling party enforced during this time.
In the schools, books were banned if they didn't abide by government restrictions. Only the government version of history was taught. The book "Black Beauty," a classic horse story, was banned because of the connotation of the title.
After getting a degree from the University of Natal, Bosonetto wanted to focus her energy on a career in journalism. She worked for a newspaper for a period of time after college and willingly covered social and political issues.
"Being a journalist, you saw it as your duty to expose what isn't right," says Bosonetto. She got to know some non-white reporters - her first opportunity to interact with non-whites as equals. There was no political representation for non-whites, and the Communist party and the ANC (African National Congress) were also banned from South Africa. The first step taken to give power to non-whites was to legalize the labor unions. These non-white groups used their organizations to push some of their muscle and gained a lot of support.
Covering "lock-outs" and talking to representatives from other parties, Bosonetto could have lost her press credentials. " The scariest thing is to watch people getting thrown into the back of the police truck," she says. With many of her friends being "detained" without reason and her phone being tapped, she decided it would be best to relocate to Botswana. The son of the U.S. Ambassador to Botswana sponsored her to come to the United States, and during her time here she met and married her husband.
In 1990, ANC leader Nelson Mandela was freed from prison, and the party imposing apartheid was no longer the sole party in control. Bosonetto returned to South Africa and witnessed the changes that occurred. She was returning to terrain that she loved.
"There were people lined up for miles to vote," Bosonetto said as she described what is like to see democratic elections for the first time. The ANC was now legalized, and an explosion of political freedom was occurring. The repression of the past was over, but Bosonetto now feared for her children as crime continued to rise. Finally she felt it necessary to return to the United States, where she values the liberties that it has to offer.
She decided to join family and friends in North Carolina. She remembered why she enjoyed America with its lack of barriers, and she began her search for where she could channel her energy. Working at a college attracted her because it seemed like the best way for her to be a part of diversity. She was inspired by the work that the LifeWorks program does here, and she wanted to experience what it had to offer. She enjoys her job and all faculty and students. "The faculty nurtures students to be their best,'' she says. She is also impressed with the maturity of some students. She recalls her college in South Africa as being "huge," and not a lot of time was spent with students individually.
Bosonetto holds two positions here at Mars Hill College. The first one is Director of Career Counseling. She offers students information that they can use in the real world. Some students don't feel like they have a direction. She wants to send out an invitation to all students, no matter what department. Bosonetto is starting to visit other colleges and compare her program with others and hopefully swap information with them to better her program. She also intends to invite many different speakers to the campus to give the students networks.
Her second position here at Mars Hill College is Director of Retention. She focuses on the problems that cause students to leave. She would like to deal with student concerns and try to help fix them. Bosonetto is willing to listen to constructive criticism and take what is said into consideration.
The plan Bosonetto has for her future is to obtain her masters degree in organizational management and complete her novel. She is also a full-time mom with an eleven-year-old and a seven-year-old. Her proudest accomplishment is the publication of her children's book," Laplembombo in African Paradise," which holds an environmental message for children.
Bosonetto would like to hear any comment and feedback that students or faculty members have for her, and she encourages them to stop by the Lifeworks Office to further discuss those ideas.
HOME
| 
