At the risk of sounding un-African, I want to
argue that Africa Day is a tragedy for South Africans!
A single day of hyped up celebrations and great speeches must influence congruent actions. It must not bring to the spotlight our collective and individual hypocrisy. It is not so currently. Therefore, Africa Day is a farce, until we do something consciously drastic about it.
In a Country like ours, a political leader can be as sarcastic towards those disagreeing with him as to ridicule an African Country's road, to push forward his argument. There are also “clever Blacks”. Yet, there are no “clever Whites”; just citizens whose disparaging and disdainful open letters about the current leadership get elaborate clarification by key officials, at a coffee shop.
In a Country like ours, a protest by wretched people (seeing that poverty in SA is bears a Black face) demanding humanity can be quelled by fatal brutality, by the State.
In a Country like ours, a political leader can amass wealth
while running (ruining?) state-funded hospitals which are meant to save and
improve the lives of Black Africans, yet be the first one to board a plane to
receive medical care in America, en route Europe.
In a Country like ours, violent attacks between Black Africans who are huddled in crowded places, trying every day to survive poverty, can be labelled “xenophobic attacks”, yet no one asks why, if it is so, that we have not chased the Italians, the British, the Czech Republicans, etc., to OR Tambo International Airport.
In a Country like ours, interventions to quell periodic attacks of Africans by Africans, becomes a pre-occupation of armed police and army personnel, "operation fielling" in crowded places exclusively inhabited by Black Africans. Europeans, Asians and Americans run all manner of illicit trades in all strategic South African cities. But that is okay. If it is not in the media, who will believe this allegation – this controlled narrative?
In a Country like ours, a White African goes to Court to deny government a chance to implement decisions, or to hold them accountable. That’s okay. A Black African, physically and institutionally placed away from Court, goes to the street, barricades things, burns stuff, pelts stones at passing motorists, and invites baton, tear gas and bullet on him or herself... before sustaining unexplained injuries of torture and rape, while detained inside a holding cell.
In a Country like ours, a Mocambique national will be dragged
behind a taxi minibus, for petty crime. A certain Mr Sithole will get butchered
with a knife, for merely daring to sell cigarette in the street. A Black
African will be torched. His crime? He was born in the north side of Limpopo.
In a Country like ours, an employed Black African, who cannot
contain the smugness of being an employer of a Lesotho or Swazi national, feels
they have carried out a revolutionary national duty, for posting on social
media ,’No To Xenophobia.’ We learn from their bragging about how thoughtful and
loving employers they are. They have fired South Africa-born helpers because they
know how to use the law to report their exploitative and oppressive ways. No to
xenophobia? Do you have any idea?
In a Country like ours, an educated Black African has no shame telling everyone that they have signed up for French classes. Raise the matter of Lingala, Kiswahili, or Shona, they have no idea what you are talking about. Forget that I could mention how some of us speak only our mother tongue, and English or Afrikaans only.
In a Country like ours, it embarrasses Black Africans when they cannot speak a European language. We even mock those like us who don't speak it properly. Yet... many White Africans cannot speak even one African language. But it is okay, we are busy learning theirs. Is it not a national crisis that there is a White African who cannot converse in at least one African language?
You are called educated and intelligent once you speak a foreign language as well as the Europeans. And the world pays you well for this extraordinary accomplishment. Where did you attend high school, you get asked. Fundulwazi High should not be what comes from your mouth. 'Oh! Where is that' will be a disappointed and shocked reaction that you will get; as if you should have said Rhodes Boys High.
It gets worse. Thabo is busy calling himself Thaa-booh (at least it's not taboo) and Jabu is now Jaa-booh, when he phones Radio 702, Metro FM. You dare correct your "name-butcherer" in a meeting, only Black Africans cringe and nervously call you uptight, to ease up tension in the room. What tension? Your name must be pronounced right! It cannot be "okay".
In a Country like ours, a person will hop into his/ her forefathers’ daily outfit to celebrate Culture Day at work. Don't ask me what we wear for another 340+ days.
In a Country like ours, a funeral in a township or village will be graced by an unsolicited language interpreter. Churches. Weddings... #MouthWideOpen
And watch us when two to three White Africans are in attendance. The affair changes into a real white wedding. Those who never got to learn this “prized” language will have to pull out their body language reading skills to follow the proceedings!
In a Country like ours, that pan-Africanist during student activism days, who wears suits, works north of Joburg and is taking his kids to Curro Something , and bears the racist abuse happening over there, gives you an uneasy look upon finding out that you listen to the music of Youssou N'dour, of Kandia Kouyate, of Mansour Seck and Papa Wemba. 'Do you even understand what those "people" are saying' he will be asking.
In a Country like ours, a Black African, who is Christian, stops short of running for dear life upon discovering that not only is Youssou N'dour's music coming through in Serer and Wolof dialects (why not in English?), but that he is of a Islam religious influence, thanks to the very Colonisation. Don’t you dare make them see the hypocrisy of their ways, they will usher the wrath of God upon you!
In a county like ours, soccer stars, their coaches and educated executives speak of 'it's tough going to play in Africa'; 'I am flying into Africa'... just like we say we are going into Soweto... into Diepsloot, without blinking.
In a Country like ours, Africa Day is an opportunity for hypocrisy to take centre stage, and for everybody to ignore, that we claim to be one with the Continent, while looking to Europe and North America for templates of dreams we must be pursuing!
Oh by the way. This piece was written in European language, to reach as many Black Africans as possible. Sesotho cannot achieve the same feat.
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