Why I don’t do 67 minutes for Mandela

Although I will be the first to acknowledge that the 67 minutes initiative for Mandela is a worthy project to support, it seems nothing more than a PR stunt for most organisations. Suddenly, we go all out to serve others on Mandela Day, we ‘remember’ his legacy and ‘inspire’ one another to work together.

The problem is our enthusiasm lasts only a day, and for some the 67 minutes they are using to serve others. Social media on the day is engulfed by posts of what people did on Mandela Day, almost like promoting the good they do and not much about what the legacy of Mandela is.

Service to fellow South Africans should be a lifestyle which we all need to embrace. We should not need a special day to dedicate to serving others. Although it is the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s aim to spark this lifestyle change – the reality is, the only lifestyle sparked is an annual service to others for only 67 minutes.

Basically, we go through 524 160 minutes in a year without sparing a thought for Mandela’s legacy or even visiting orphans and the elderly, suddenly on July 18 we pose for photographs to go on social media and featured in newspapers for all the ‘good work we did’ for 67 Minutes on Mandela Day.

For me, Nelson Mandela’s legacy is about forgiveness, unity, peace and human dignity. While it is great to add value to those less fortunate than us on the day; what are we doing the rest of the year? Are we making every day a Mandela Day as we profess?

The issue of redress continues to be on everyone’s minds as we continuously work towards social cohesion. With this in mind, we should spend more effort in making sure Mandela’s dream of a united South Africa is lived and not just something on paper.

We should not view racism as a practice generally exercised by a white man, but rather an issue all of us in society need to address.

South Africa has come a long way since 1994; however, recent years have exposed a new type of a racist, The Black Racist. A black man has been exposed as a ‘modern day racist’ if you and I may refer to him as that.

Though he cries victim of the past, he exercises the same injustice he experienced on others. His racism is driven by revenge and bitterness; he has lost focus of the future or the hope he selflessly fought for.

Every time he sees a white man, he is reminded of Apartheid; he sees nothing more than an oppressor instead of seeing a fellow South African; this is a man who believes the world owes him everything. He is a victim in his own country and allows his kind to oppress him

A black man’s racism is not that of torturing the white man with physical pain, but he tortures him with guilt and blame. He asks if it is because he is black or labels him a ‘child of Apartheid’ and accuses him of being counter revolutionary or lacking in understanding the Struggle.

Human beings have always classed each other based on the background they are from. The English are different from the Afrikaner, Greek, Portuguese, and other social groups. Although their skin colour looks similar, they would identify with their own class.

If you are an Englishman, you do not necessarily associate yourself with Afrikaans people. In fact, a friend of mine once told me a story a few days after he was engaged to be married to an Afrikaans woman. From his family’s side there was little to no resistance, however, the family of his soon to be wife had always given him a challenging time since they started dating.

He said, “Some family members would deliberately speak to him in Afrikaans, knowing very well he would not respond in Afrikaans.”

In theory, my friend was pretty much doomed from the first day. However, today he is happily married to the same Afrikaans woman.

I use relationships as an example because they are the one area where social groups separate themselves from one another. Black people do the same. Tswana people do not necessarily mix with Zulus or Xhosas, neither do ‘Bapedi’ associate themselves with Tsongas, Vendas and Zimbabweans.

Although our lives are inter-linked at certain points, we seem to have a difficult time accepting one another, despite our differences. This has always been the case and will probably continue for years to come.

As you can possibly gather from the illustration I gave, Mandela Day or his legacy should be a continuous work aimed at making all South Africans feel like they belong – no one should be marginalised for being who they are.

Although our political views and cultural backgrounds may differ, we have one thing in common; we are South African. We shake hands and celebrate the Proteas’ victory; we shed a tear for Bafana Bafana… When a woman is raped, we are all hurt and want justice!