Wits vice-chancellor Prof. Adam Habib.
Former University of Witwatersrand (Wits) vice-chancellor Prof Adam Habib has responded to critics against his use of American racial slur (n-word) while addressing students in a webinar on Thursday.
Habib, who now works as a director at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at the University of London, has been trending on social media since then.
In a series of tweets, Habib said that some people were deliberately misrepresenting the conversation, while some rushed to judgment without facts and turning the issue into a political spectacle.
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“So let me explain what really happened,” tweeted Habib.
“A student did question SOAS’ responsiveness to anti-black racism and suggested a staff member used the word without consequences,” he explained.
“I did use the word and said: ‘if someone used the word ‘nigger’ against another staff member, then it would violate our policy & action would be taken’.”
“Another student objected arguing that only those who were ‘black’ (or what I in SA would describe as ‘black African’) could actually verbalise the word. I was taken aback because the case was being argued devoid of any understanding or explanation of the context of my argument.”
He said that the only reason he verbally said that he was “arguing for taking punitive action”.
“You cannot impute maligned intention without understanding context. Do I believe that only blacks can verbalise the word? No, I don’t.”
READ MORE: Habib slams EFF leaders, implies only thing they read is ‘party memorabilia’
Habib said that he was surprised by the reaction because he could have made the same statement in the context of the same argument in South Africa without provoking the reaction.
“I did not say we use the word in SA. This is a deliberate distortion used for despicable political agendas.”
“I then did apologise saying no offense was intended and I again said that if the word was used against another person, it would be a disciplinary offence as it would violate our policies.”
He went on to question the agenda of those who were still debating the issue on Friday.
“What is their agenda? There were many issues of importance discussed at the meeting: the strategic plan, the experiences of students and what measures are being instituted to address it, what can SOAS do and what it cannot afford. None of this is highlighted. What is the agenda?”
He said that he only apologised because some individuals felt offended, and it was the right thing to do.
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