Eddie Ndopu Oxford
Eddie Ndopu is 25-years-old and the first African with a disability to be admitted to the prestigious University of Oxford in England. Ndopu, a queer feminist and disability rights activist, will be studying to receive a Master's degree in Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government, but needs your help.
Okayafrica goes into further detail about Ndopu's history:
"Raised by a single mother who fled apartheid South Africa to self-imposed exile in Namibia, Ndopu was diagnosed at the age of two with spinal muscular atrophy and given until the age of five to survive.In the two decades since his prognosis, Ndopu has led an extraordinary life and career. Up until recently he was the Head of Amnesty International’s Youth Engagement Work for Africa. Prior to that he was part of the 2008 inaugural class of the African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg and a summa cum laude graduate of Carleton University in Canada, where he served as a research analyst at the World Economic Forum. At 20, Ndopu was invited to give a Master’s Tea at Yale. Indeed, Ndopu’s credentials are ridiculously stacked. The magazine Pacific Standard named him one of their Top 30 Thinkers Under 30 this year."
Ndopu has also been named as one of the Top 200 Young South Africans by Mail and Guardianamong other accolades. Although Ndopu has received a full scholarship for his studies, costs related to his disability have not been accounted for. Ndopu needs approximately 35,000 dollars, for things such as an automated wheelchair and to cover the expenses of a caregiver, to make the journey to Oxford a reality. Ndopu has started a campaign dubbed #OxfordEddiecated to help raise the funds.
Meet Eddie Ndopu yourself in this video, directed by Nadine Kutu, about himself and #OxfordEddiecated below. Head over to Facebook or Indiegogo for more on the campaign and to donate.
Read the full piece on Okayafrica here.
