Mathapelo Mofokeng
Writer and Abortion Doula
Mathapelo is a storytelling-for-impact and advocacy facilitator, and a self-taught literary prose writer.
Her writing brings the everyday lived experiences of Black people into narratives that grapple with the ongoing impacts of racial injustice, and has appeared in Kenyon Review, Adda, Gagosian Quarterly, and Popshot Quarterly, amongst others, and has been anthologised in the Best Debut Short Stories 2022: The PEN America Dau Prize and Goldsmith Press’s The Future of Media.
She is a recipient of the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers and has been awarded fellowships by MacDowell, the Camargo Foundation, and the Miles Morland Foundation. Mathapelo explores storytelling as a mechanism for healing.
As a storytelling-for-impact and advocacy facilitator, she has worked for a decade with people across South Africa to craft their personal stories for use in their advocacy strategies in areas such as health, the environment, violence, poverty, education, and drug dependency.
Mathapelo also volunteers as an end-of-life companion, a grief counsellor, and an abortion advocate and companion, offering care for people before, during, and after the abortion process. In addition to being a witness and brief friend, a significant part of her role is assisting women in accessing health services and supporting them through the process. She ensures they have access to safe and private environments when needed and helps them navigate their physical and emotional experiences with curiosity and care, ultimately reaching a place where they feel at peace and affirmed.
Mathapelo received her training in abortion companionship from the Dopo Co-op, and draws on the collective wisdom and experiences of the global network to inform how she provides care.