Racism again rears its ugly head

The racism bomb has again exploded in a country that is apparently struggling to shake off the Apartheid shackles.

First there was the apparent racial incident at a mall in Boksburg during which two white shoppers were beaten up by a mob.

And then there was the shocking accusation by a professional cyclist that he was called a k….r during a race that was staged in Boksburg recently.

Judging by the strong reaction from the public regarding the apparent racial incidents, it is clear we still have a long road to walk to realise Mandela’s dream of a genuinely racism-free Rainbow Nation.

Some readers have deemed the apparent racism as the media’s seeking after sensationalism, while others have felt that people need to stop being so politically sensitive.

Others have reacted by condemning such actions, saying there is no place for racism in the new South Africa.

For those who want to turn the cold shoulder on the racial incident, or who have accused the media of publishing only negative stories, we, unfortunately. need to face reality.

Yes, we must be careful not to become obsessed with political correctness or to lose our sense of humour, but we also need to acknowledge that the cruel side of racism keeps on rearing its ugly head.

The reality is that racism does hurt when its intention is to inflict harm, this is why we need to judge the intent of racial remarks.

After all, South Africans of all races are constantly called names, but the intent is, many times, not deemed ugly, neither does it carry the intent to cause emotional or psychological harm.

It was not long ago when, in Cape Town, there was an incident between a white and a black man at an ATM, with racial remarks being flung around. The volatile encounter ended in a fist fight.

There was also a video that emerged of an apparent racial incident at a fast food franchise, during which a white man was mishandled at the counter by members of a prominent political party.

The threat and danger of racism is most assuredly on the minds of many South Africans, judging by the furore over the Tweet posted by a prominent artist last year, in which he called black people ”the architects of Apartheid”.

The post resulted in the artist being ostracised by the organisers of certain musical festivals, while some fans of all races felt hurt by such a remark.

So yes, the darker side of racism is present. It is by nature destructive and disrespectful.

Bad blood no doubt still flows deep in the country’s veins.

America, the land of opportunity, has also valiantly tried to maintain the image of glorious unity, yet over the last year that image has dramatically shattered, due to the Ferguson shooting.

An ongoing series of protests and civil disorder erupted throughout America the day after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Missouri.

Back home, it has been 21 years since our first free general election, yet the South African film industry cannot help but continue to showcase productions that reflect our past and, inadvertently, reflect on our present volatile political situation.

In America, the film studios also continue to bombard the public with reminders of their torrid past (12 Years a Slave, Selma).

Why? Because burying the past is no good if its ghost still haunts a nation.

Mandela was right when he said no one is born hating another person, and that we are taught to hate or that we choose to hate.

No action from government will solve racism. It is up to each and every individual if they wish to love, to truly forgive and to choose living in tolerant unity with all races.

Racism might, for many, be a card that should be removed from the deck of life, but, for now, the ugliness remains like the visible E-toll gantries.

We can only but hope that racism that keeps rearing its ugly head will eventually slither under a rock and be forgotten in the hearts of Africa’s people.