Heritage month: Diverse people can be united

Heritage Month and Heritage Day are a time the nation ought to celebrate oneness in diversity where every race, every clan, every nation, has its own heritage – but building a common heritage continues to be a major struggle in South Africa, say experts.

South African society presents such diversity in languages, cultures, religions, tribes, politics and nationalities, among others, but unity in diversity requires clarity of mind and great levels of tolerance for each other’s uniqueness.

Mbulelo Mpongwana from Soweto said the historical geopolitical landscape in SA had long been divided along tribal and ethnic lines and the arrival on SA shores of Europeans.

The situation was further compounded by forced separation in the form of wars, the Land Act and, ultimately, the Group Areas Act.

Mpongwana said this created a situation whereby South African ethnic groups lived in silos, depriving citizens of developing a coherent heritage.

Bonds were forged through sport, religion, trade unionism, politics against the oppressive regime, as well as true entertainment, like music.

“Unfortunately, these forms of unity and identity have been along racial demographics, thus depriving South Africans of genuine inclusive her Mpongwana said to truly forge unitary heritage, there must be a true economic emancipation of the majority to enable them to live, work, educate and socialise according to their own social stratification.

He said the government must provide an enabling environment through provision of the right infrastructure.

“There must be genuine mindset changes among the various race groups to embrace other cultures, more specifically, in the form of languages guided by demographics.

Otherwise, real unitary heritage will remain a pipe dream for South Africans,” he said.

With language being one critical aspect of people’s heritage, Lindiwe Mkhize from Vosloorus said SA was a diverse nation because of its languages.

“The country has a lot of heritage to be proud of and it would not be easy to bring it together as each and every clan were proud of their heritage and it could only be interesting to keep sharing and learning from each other,” she said.

Mkhize said nongovernmental organisations were playing their part and contributed a lot to society. “In most cases they looked after and took care of destitute children or orphans, who came from different backgrounds, and raised them.”

She said the government could play its role by making sure it made means available to alleviate the ills the nation faced, especially poor people who faced poverty in their daily lives.

“This is also one of the reasons why people feel Heritage Day is losing some of its meaning. “As a matter of fact, this is why a lot of holidays are not appreciated because people are going through too much,” she said.

ALSO READ: Heritage Month has become a historically arrested exercise

– lungas@citizen.co.za