Being white in post-2000 Zimbabwe: a reading of Eames’ Cry of the Go-Away Bird

Abstract

This article looks at Zimbabwean whiteness in the context of loss, dispossession, victimisation and the need to belong. It draws from literary narratives written by Zimbabwean whites, particularly Andrea Eames’ Cry of the Go-Away Bird, and argues that in the aftermath of the fast-tracked land reform programme of 2000, the avenues of speech became increasingly restricted for Zimbabwean whites. This gave rise to new sites of speaking and literary narratives. By means of fiction, memoirs and autobiographies whites make themselves heard and add their voices to the mainstream debate about whiteness, land ownership, citizenship and a need to belong, albeit to a marginalised group. Eames’ Cry of the Go-Away Bird is significant in its engagement with the aforementioned issues. This article examines the text against the background of Du Bois’ notion of double consciousness, the sense of being caught between conflicting ideals, and the need to belong.