Cultural challenges of young black widows in Mangaung in the Free State, South Africa

Abstract

Young black widows in Mangaung, in the Free State Province of South Africa, experience particular cultural challenges once their partners pass away. The aim of this article was to explore and describe these cultural challenges and identify strategies for the empowerment of widows within their communities. Utilising a qualitative approach, 16 widows (ages 24-40) were sampled using both purposive and snowball sampling. Focus groups, individual in-depth interviews and workshops within a participant action research design were employed for data collection. A thematic data analysis was performed. The credibility of the findings was enhanced by triangulating the data. The Ethics Committee of the University (HS 17/5/1) approved the study and all ethics considerations were taken into account. The main theme of the article highlights how young widows experienced marginalisation and isolation, which included being blamed for the death of their husbands, stigmatisation from the community and financial vulnerability. The second theme describes how participants identified support groups, counselling and community education as empowerment strategies to deal with patriarchal cultural practices. It is recommended that social workers and non-governmental organisations engage with the government to address the discrimination that young black widows face.