South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa has condemned the act of racism been outraged at the sight of a white student of the University of Stellenbosch degrading and humiliating a fellow black student on campus recently, while described it as a despicable act.
Ramaphosa who made this known on Monday over the Students Protest, said racism is an appalling act that has been roundly condemned, but still has been a feature of every-day life in South Africa, adding that the sooner every S'African recognise the reality, the sooner they change it".
The President disclosed that there has been widespread anger, that such acts still take place in a country with a bitter past like South Africa; a past which the Government have fought so hard to overcome.
"It is more troubling that such incidents are happening at schools and places of higher learning. A number of the people involved were born after the end of apartheid", he lamented.
According to him, "We know that racism, here and around the world, is driven by feelings of superiority on the part of those who perpetuate it. And although racism can be directed against anyone, it is black people who bear the brunt, both in the past and in the present.
"As the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement has so strongly asserted, we need to systematically dismantle and eradicate attitudes of white superiority.
"It is encouraging and exhilarating to see young South Africans taking the lead in this effort. The thousands of students who have joined protests at Stellenbosch and elsewhere were not responding to just one incident".
Ramaphosa further said "It is encouraging and exhilarating to see young South Africans taking the lead in this effort. The thousands of students who have joined protests at Stellenbosch and elsewhere were not responding to just one incident.
"They were responding to a deep and pervasive problem in our society, which they themselves have to confront daily. As Kwenzokuhle Khumalo, a 4th year Management Sciences student and leader, told students on the Stellenbosch campus this week: “You’ve met the wrong generation this time.”
He also noted that like the youth of 1976, a new generation of young South Africans is stepping forward to proclaim their birth right and reclaim their future. "They are challenging society to grapple with racism, its causes and its effects.
"As Ms Khumalo rightly said, it is not black people who are the problem and need attention, but those people who still hold on to ideas of white superiority.
"It cannot be that the onus must rest with the formerly oppressed as the main victims of racism to advance reconciliation. It cannot be that black South Africans have to continue to prove themselves worthy of dignity and respect.
The President recalled in 2016 judgment on a case involving an employee of the South African Revenue Service who was fired for using the k-word at work, Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng wrote:
“There are many bridges yet to be crossed in our journey from crude and legalised racism to a new order where social cohesion, equality and the effortless observance of the right to dignity is a practical reality.”
"If we are going to cross these bridges, we need to understand what is causing racist attitudes to flourish in our schools and places of higher learning. We need to understand what kind of institutional cultures contribute to racism in workplace, in social organisations and in communities".
Added that Government need frank and honest dialogue between people of different races on the experiences of black people in South Africa 28 years into democracy. These discussions should be part of the life orientation curriculum in our schools.
"The arts and culture community should produce content and programming that fully reflects the diversity of the country and the lived experiences of people of all races".
Ramaphosa said greater emphasis should be placed on inculcating tolerance and respect for diversity in the classroom from a young age.
"Parents should be part of this effort because the reality is that racist, chauvinistic and sexist attitudes among the younger generation are often a reflection of what they observe and learn from their parents and older relatives at home.
"As many student leaders who took part in protests over the past week said, when it comes to transformation the time for half-measures is over.
"This doesn’t only apply to overt racism in schools, workplaces and places of higher learning, but to all of society. Just as racists must be held accountable for their actions, all sectors of society, including business, must advance transformation".
He stated that the rights to equality and human dignity are cornerstones of South Africa Constitution and building a non-racial and non-sexist society is its shared fundamental responsibility.
"In complying with employment equity legislation, in advancing broad-based black economic empowerment, in taking practical steps towards redress and undoing the legacy of our discriminatory past, we are not just obeying the law.
We are redressing a grave injustice and building a new country in which race, class and gender no longer determine the circumstances of one’s birth or one’s prospects in life".
The President pointed out that ending racism is not just about changing attitudes; it is also about changing the material conditions that still today separate black and white South Africans.
"We have come too far and the sacrifices made have been too great for such appalling acts of racism to turn us against each other. Rather, we must use this incident to confront the issue of race and racial inequality in our society.
It is our wish and expectation that the student population and the broader Stellenbosch university community, both black and white, find each other and rally together to confront racism honestly with courage and truthfulness.
They must roundly reject what has happened and express their determination to achieve a learning environment free of bigotry, racism and chauvinism and embrace a non-racial future for Stellenbosch University. By so doing they will set the standard for us all", he said.
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