The Black Plague!
OK, so let me get something straight; if they sit on the same park bench, or even if they swim (not that too many of them can anyway) on the identical section of the OCEAN as you, you might, WHAT, catch something? Slowly set in motion a process that would turn you black too? Pick up their nasty habits; like talking in a very animated manor, having a great sense of rhythm (now that was uncalled for) or speaking loudly to people although you may be close proximity to each other?
Yes, I am very confused and I can never wrap my head around it. Of course, like the old saying goes, you had to be there to know what it was like. You know walk a mile in a man’s shoes (not that the masterminds of Apartheid did a lot of walking at all) blaa, blaa, blaa. So many of them, so few of us, so let’s protect our interests by using any and all mean of mental and physical abuse (let’s not sugar-coat it), so that ‘they’ don’t wake up one day and figure out that if they mobilize against us, sheer numbers alone would work against us and that would be the end of us as a people.
A bit of a heavy way to begin, but there are just some aspects of our controversial history that I still have trouble getting to grips with. I am one of those ‘see the flip side of the coin before you decide’ kind of people. I want to know what inspired the chain of thoughts that ultimately led to such insane laws? I look at children in a playground, watch as they run away from a child that has just ‘let out some unwanted wind’ (how diplomatic), and how they are ostracized for a little while because you don’t want to catch fart germs. Their logic, although loosely following the same rationalization as our past government’s, made far more sense then separating a beach!
Anyways these laws got in the way of friendships. I remember a white friend of mine telling me how she had to travel in separate carriages to her friend. There was her young black friend, not even 11 years of age, having to endure a fairly long train ride alone and afraid, all because of a law that just felt like black and white people shouldn’t even be breathing the same quality air, let alone share a cabin with black people. All activities that were planned had to be more thoroughly thought through than a CIA operation. Like a master chess player, you had factor in what could happen a few moves later, and make sure that you had contingencies in place. We became the dirty little secrets that our friends had. We usually slept over at their houses where we had parties, watched movies or any other activities that could be held at their homes because on their properties, we could be hidden away from those who believed that what we were doing was wrong.
Personally I believe the past is the past. Mistakes were made, not by the youth of my generation, but by the masterminds of Apartheid, those who believed in it and those affected by their negative propaganda. The cycle still continues today, although we are making sure that it spins drastically slower. I am shocked and horrified that we still have an Afrikaner only community, Orania, where they are practicing petty Apartheid by default. There’s a fact that they might find strange, but which in all actuality is true and that is that we can actually learn from each other’s cultures. It’s something that the planet, in this century, understands very well. Surely Orania is on a certain path of becoming a community with the highest level in inbreeding in South Africa, albeit a title they may already have (which would explain a lot)?
So this time I spoke less about how this affected me, because why should it be me, me, and me? I just took you through a journey that might just spark thought or arguments that I would love to hear. This was one of the most baffling aspects of Apartheid rule, and in talking more about it, hopefully I’ll get to know and better understand it, even though it still will not make any sense.
So my challenge to you is what do you have to say?
@Carla, Where do you get it into your head that they don’t respect anything that is not steeped in Afrikaner heritage. They went there to try and live as Afrikaners practicing there language, culture and doing it as an ethnic majority, they did not go to there destroy Zulu, Tswhana and Pedi heritage. Why would they hate or disrespect other peoples cultures, it is about them not about you, perhaps the sun does not revolve around Carla,.and if you get that idea from the article, well we both know it is far from objective the writing of “me, me..me” towards the end might have been an indication. Who said you can’t go there? Black people can shop at any of the shops in Orania many do, all the facilities in Orania is available to anyone guesthouses, toilets, etc. You can go there! To form an ethnic majority they have to do there own labour so obviously you are not going to get a job there, and obviously if 12 buses of provoking people go to cause disruptions of locals then you’d get trouble, but going there to see Afrikaner culture? Perhaps that is exactly what you should do so you can see we are not a plague we are not animals, hell I’ll go with you if you want.
@Alex, the absurdity of your argument is mind boggling, we are going to have one or at best two towns where Afrikaners will form an ethnic majority, most Afrikaners will not live there like myself they will support them from the side like maybe sending there children there for school and university, it will serve as a kind of cultural and lingual heimat, that is about it. Your arguing that we will because of this become technologically less advanced – how do you get to that? And why is how Afrikaners choose to live the concern of one Alex Papadopulos, Why? You know these people are comfortable with integration with black communities in Europe, guy communities, but let a few Afrikaners decide to form 1 not 100, just one town where they form an ethnic majority and people complain the world might go backwards. People scare me, I sometimes wonder if they might someday actually throw as into gas chambers because we are Nazi’s and would they see the irony.
Alex, the absurdity of your argument is mind boggling, we are going to have one or at best two towns where Afrikaners will form an ethnic majority, most Afrikaners will not live there like myself they will support them from the side like maybe sending there children there for school and university, it will serve as a kind of cultural and lingual heimat, that is about it. Your arguing that we will because of this become technologically less advanced – how do you get to that? And why is how Afrikaners choose to live the concern of one Alex Papadopulos, Why? You know these people are comfortable with integration with black communities in Europe, guy communities, but let a few Afrikaners decide to form 1 not 100, just one town where they form an ethnic majority and people complain the world might go backwards. People scare me, I sometimes wonder if they might someday actually throw as into gas chambers because we are Nazi’s and would they see the irony.
@Michelle
“The chance to view South Africa objectively. ”
No one ever views anything objectively Michelle, we are all products of our own upbringing and environment
@ wherewolf
Okay, man. I’ve slept on it and although I think you and I may need to agree to disagree on this one, one thing you said did stick in my head…
The need for security. Orania as an ethinic home-base of sorts. Believe it or not, I can understand that. I had never really considered it before, because I have the luxury of being born English speaking which means that many, many people in the world speak my language. I can understand how not having that is a major concern for the Afrikaans community.
@wherewolf
I read that you had to get permission to enter the town if you weren’t Afrikaans? I never for once said the world revolves around me. This is far bigger than lonely little me. This is about all South Africans.
If we are going to debate subjects let’s try to stick to our arguments and points shall we rather than lambast and insult people who hold different opinions. I don’t feel i’ve made any of my comments personal yet the same cannot be said for some others.
@Carla, It is private property so for journalist’s writers or dignitaries, making an appointment is just good manners. But if you want to go and have a look, do it. They are not unreasonable people, should you as a black person be travelling past the town and decide to go and have a look nobody is going to chase you with pitchforks or anything crazy, they have a little information office and take people on tours of the town, very informative and you know they don’t care what race or ethnic group you belong to, they just I guess how do I put this…brag a bit about what they have accomplished. Like I said you can just go you don’t need like Zuma’s approval, but if you want to go to cause a scene then it’s something ells. The coloured neighbourhood of Eersterust in Pretoria wanted to learn about community development so they where advised by some university professor that the best example of it is Orania so he phoned them and organised for 3 taxies full of non-whites to visit the town and have meetings with them to see if they can take some ideas back with them.( I think they were there for a few days) I always believed that freedom is best practised on the local level, when communities steer there own destiny, for governments are always corrupt. People should always have the choice who they want to associate with, we all discriminate in our everyday decisions all the time, where we buy what shoes we buy, who we like who we dislike, it is human nature, forced segregation and forced integration is the same thing, it is forced and rape is rape because it is forced, governments on the other hand should never, ever discriminate (equality under the law), apartheid was wrong under the white regime and affirmative action is wrong under the black regime now. Just because Afrikaners want to continue as a people never meant hating or disapproving of other people, but how we choose to live is ultimately up to us, otherwise you are going to fall in the trap of paternalistic racism of knowing better then us what is best for us. That is what we did during apartheid, thought we knew better, so perhaps it is as niche said: “You always become the monster you hated the most”
Thank you wherewolf. That makes a lot more sense to me.
@wherewolf
“Just because Afrikaners want to continue as a people never meant hating or disapproving of other people, but how we choose to live is ultimately up to us, otherwise you are going to fall in the trap of paternalistic racism of knowing better then us what is best for us. That is what we did during apartheid, thought we knew better, so perhaps it is as niche said: “You always become the monster you hated the most””.
Best argument you’ve put forward. It also makes a lot more sense to me.