Some white people show outrage after Maimane says he’ll fight ‘black tax’

While black people were saying “Does he know what black tax is?,” “Is he going to talk to our families individually and ask them to stop asking us for money?” and “Black tax isn’t a number you play with. It’s legacy. Its inherited responsibility due to centuries of black oppression and denial of economic opportunity inequality,” some white people were getting upset because they thought DA leader Mmusi Maimane was saying black people shouldn’t pay tax to the state.

These were just some of the comments and questions that were tweeted in response to Maimane’s declaration that his party would help black professionals combat black tax if said professionals were to vote for the party in the upcoming elections.

For those who don’t know, “black tax” is the informal term that’s arisen to describe the fact that breadwinners in black communities often carry a financial burden to care for a multitude of family members and extended family members in one way or the other, and that such payments are often simply expected.

It is not an actual “tax” levied by government on anyone.

Maimane urges black professionals to trust the DA to reduce black tax | @tshidi_lee https://t.co/tQHDosXUv0 pic.twitter.com/hWwcQhYgra

— News24 🇿🇦 (@News24) April 30, 2019

Speaking on a wide range of campaign promises made by his party, the Soweto native told News24 in a recent interview that he could relate to “the black tax issue” and went on to share that his party had a plan to combat it.

“If we don’t have this vision of putting a job in every home, of building a capable state, then this issue of black tax will be exacerbated even more, as more people join the ranks of unemployment,” Maimane told the publication.

However, not all social media users were buying the explanation and weighed in on Maimane’s statements, with some dismissing him as not even understanding what black tax is.

I am sure Maimane thinks black tax is decided by the Minister of Finance https://t.co/64Hglah6E0

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— Khandani Msibi (@KhandaniM) April 30, 2019

https://twitter.com/Madiela7/status/1123191612987846657

Maimane is now urging black professionals to trust DA to reduce black tax. Makes one wonder if he knows or understands what black tax is. https://t.co/zZA8dBLP8L

— #Unputdownable (@ThomasMoko) April 30, 2019

He could have asked what Black Tax is. We could have helped him? How could we reduce it without the land? Mara ke?

— kgaugelo moraka (@kgauzi) April 30, 2019

Others seem to have misunderstood the concept of “black tax” altogether and have threatened to boycott the DA as a result. Some merely questioned the meaning of the term while asking if there was such a thing as “white tax.”

https://twitter.com/koos_der/status/1123118259757305856

https://twitter.com/TheRNPSA/status/1123139518884921345

https://twitter.com/BbmblondeGene/status/1123143139336818689

This man is not talking to the people, he's talking to the money. BIG MISTAKE. This will cost VOTERS. Wrong man for the job. If the labour force strike, they can bring down the country, something ALL POLITICIANS CONVENIENTLY FORGET AT ELECTION TIME.

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— Stardust 🌟👽💞 (@AsVanDerW) April 30, 2019

What is black tax??? Is there a difference between black tax and white tax?? I always thought tax is tax and it’s colourless.

— Gabriele Vogel (@amatuli) April 30, 2019

Didn’t know tax were color coded… Can anyone apply to pay black tax?

— Priscilla le Roux (@pris_001) April 30, 2019

Nice one, statements like this, continue to keep SA divided. 25 years later and politicians are still using the past and colour as political tools to further their agendas. Statements like these leave voters conflicted on who to vote for.

— Rory Klein (@GrognardDM) April 30, 2019

https://twitter.com/VanessaEdmunds/status/1123197524985167874

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