About this journal

Safundi is a peer-reviewed quarterly academic journal that addresses southern Africa and its transnational relationships to other parts of the world. Past contributors to Safundi include noted writers and intellectuals like Chris Abani, Pumla Dineo Gqola, Mark Behr, Noam Chomsky, and Abdulrazak Gurnah, recipient of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature.

Originally founded as a venue for analyses of the United States and South Africa from a comparative perspective, the title derives from the initial letters of South Africa and America and the word fundi, which comes from the isiXhosa verb - funda, which translates as “to read” or “to learn.” The journal remains committed to publishing work on South Africa and the United States, while also expanding its scope to include the whole of southern Africa and its historical, cultural, and political connections to the Global North and the Global South.

“Many of the essays in Safundi draw illuminating comparisons and contrasts between how race is represented in South Africa and the United States."
- Paul Giles & R.J. Ellis, American Quarterly

“An indispensable academic resource for their pursuit of insightful contribution to this topic.”
- T. Tantelinirina, American Studies International

“ Safundi has produced some remarkable pioneering essays in its comparative field...”
- Paul Giles, Comparative American Studies

Peer Review Statement

All research articles and essays published in this journal have undergone rigorous peer review, based on initial Editor screening and subsequent double anonymous refereeing by at least two referees. Review articles, round table discussions, visual essays, interviews and book notes are assessed by the Editors but are not externally peer reviewed.

Lead Editor:
Christopher J. Lee - Harvard University, USA

Co-Editors:
Ruramisai Charumbira - Western University, Canada
Simon van Schalkwyk -  University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa 

Visual Essays Editor:
Kylie Thomas - University College Cork, Ireland and NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, the Netherlands

Contributing Editor:
Derek Catsam - University of Texas of the Permian Basin, USA

International Editorial Board:
Philip Aghoghovwia - University of the Free State, South Africa
Rita Barnard - University of Pennsylvania, USA
Louise Bethlehem - Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
Kerry Bystrom - Bard College, USA/Germany
Nadia Davids - University of Cape Town, South Africa
Jacob Dlamini - Princeton University, USA
Shane Graham - Utah State University, USA
Pamila Gupta - University of the Free State, South Africa
Stefan Helgesson - Stockholm University, Sweden
Sean Jacobs - The New School, USA
Tsitsi Jaji - Duke University, USA
Simon Lewis - College of Charleston, USA
Alex Lichtenstein - Indiana University, USA
Xavier Livermon - University of California, Santa Cruz, USA
Diana Mafe - Denison University, USA
Zine Magubane - Boston College, USA
Nomusa Makhubu - University of Cape Town, South Africa
Wamuwi Mba - Stellenbosch University, South Africa
Mandisa Mbali - University of Cape Town, South Africa
Tshepo Moloi - University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Nedine Moonsamy - University of Pretoria, South Africa
Brenna Munro - University of Miami, USA
Annel Pieterse - Stellenbosch University, South Africa
Aretha Phiri - Rhodes University, South Africa
Connie Rapoo - University of Botswana, Botswana
Pallavi Rastogi - Louisiana State University, USA
Karin Shapiro - Duke University, USA
Thula Simpson - University of Pretoria, South Africa
T. J. Tallie - University of San Diego, USA
Drew Thompson - Bard Graduate Center, USA
Michael Titlestad - University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Hedley Twidle - University of Cape Town, South Africa
Andrew van der Vlies - University of Adelaide, Australia
Robert Vinson - University of Virginia, USA
Jennifer Wenzel - Columbia University, USA
Luvuyo Wotshela - University of Fort Hare, South Africa
Timothy Wright - Bilkent University, Turkey

Honorary Lifetime Board Member
Chris Saunders - University of Cape Town, South Africa

Emeritus Board Members
Norman Etherington - University of Western Australia, Australia
Jeremy Foster - Cornell University, USA
Albert Grundlingh - Stellenbosch University, South Africa
Rick Halpern - University of Toronto, Canada
Jon Hyslop - Colgate University, USA
Dana Phillips - Towson University, USA
Stéphane Robolin - Rutgers University, USA

Founding Editor:
Andrew Offenburger

Cover Artwork:
Faatimah Mohamed-Luke
Artwork used with kind permission of the artist

Updated 06-02-2024

News, offers and calls for papers

News and offers

• SI book version - Struggle for a Free South Africa Campus Anti-Apartheid Movements in Africa and the United States, 1960–1994