The Problem with South Africa
By Jason Doller
I recently came across a website that expressed views about South Africa and South Africans in general that disturbed me. I am not going to highlight the site by mentioning it here, but I have posted my response below.
You should have a disclaimer on your site indicating that you don't speak for:Why would you see all blacks, most especially a black child, as being someone worthy of hate? What has she ever done to harm you? And if you hate her because of the potential she has to harm you when she grows up, is she justified in hating you (or your children) for the potential you have to harm her? This philosophy only leads to endless hate and unhappiness.
- All, or even most, South Africans, and
- All, or even most, white South Africans.
Can you honestly say that most black South Africans are worthy of your hate and contempt? Have you even spoken to enough black South Africans to have an opinion? I agree that there is a vocal minority who are blatant racists and are deserving of contempt, but they are just that - a minority. And even they deserve contempt and not hatred.
I don't believe that BBBEE, or AA are good tools to solve our problems. I also hate the crime and violence. I am worried about the direction that our country is taking. But I don't have to hate people to express that concern. I don't have to incite or condone violence against children (or adults, for that matter) in order to let people know how I feel. By perpetuating hate you are perpetuating the problems that South Africa is facing. The problem is widespread indifference, and racial intolerance by a vocal minority. You're part of the problem, and your attitude is making it worse.
Your site could document your feelings and concerns, and highlight the crime problem WITHOUT resorting to racial attacks that do nothing more than alienate normal people who are concerned with the problems we face, and give the government and other political figures a target to point to as an example of how the social problems of our past have not gone away, but are "deep rooted in the community".
You are not a part of my community, and I distance myself from you and all like you. People are people, skin colour and tone is incidental. Learn to deal with that and I'm sure you will be a happier person. It must be terribly difficult living with the burden of hate that appears to be the focal point of your life.
2 Responses to The Problem with South Africa
Demotix- The Citizen Wire
Dear Jason,
You're site is fantastic. We hope you might see a cross over with what we're launching!
Demotix is a website for user-generated news, and a citizen ‘wire’ service. Think of it like Flickr or YouTube, but only for original photo/video news. You tell us what is going on, we tell the worldwide web and the world’s mainstream media. As of now, www.demotix.com is live.
Why are we doing it?
We believe citizen journalism – well-managed – can be a tremendous force in political participation, civil society, and freedom of speech around the world. And we believe the media needs rescuing.
• Only four US newspapers have foreign news desks (the NY Times, LA Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal), and there are only 141 US foreign correspondents currently working today (in print and broadcast media)
• In the UK, a 2006 study of the broadsheets showed that more than 50% of the news was directly attributable to press releases
• The world’s media (over 90%) relies on the wire services – the Associated Press and Reuters – for their news. But some 80 countries, or 40% of the world’s nations, have no bureau from either agency.
The news is shrinking daily. We hope Demotix can plug that gap, and more.
We hope to be giving a megaphone to the man and woman in the street with a story to tell. We hope to be able to change the news map – bringing real, raw, original information from countries and about issues the mainstream media haven’t touched in years.
Eventually we hope that Demotix will be THE place where anyone in the world can go, in safety, to upload news – major, minor, local, cultural, political, social... We already have agreements with the Daily Telegraph, Newsweek, La Repubblica, Prospect and others – and will now supply them with a daily wire and picture feed of 'citizen' news. We have also built partnerships with Amnesty, Reporters Sans Frontieres, Witness and many others.
But we need your help. We want to do in pictures/video what you do for text. If you think there is a cross-over and you like us, please write about us, link to us, spread the news. We're nothing without contributors, and your readers are exactly whom we want to be reaching out to. We can get their news out to the world, and in the process change what news is reported. And we'll charge the mainstream media for anything they use, splitting the fees 50:50 with our contributors.
Please be in touch! Are there other ways we might collaborate?
With all thanks
Turi
Turi Munthe
www.demotix.com
Two things.
Firstly I can't help but wonder what the intentions are of the previous commentator, what has Demotix got to do with anything, sounds like spam to me.
Secondly, incredible post. You have a very unique perspective on thing's which does just that, puts thing's into perspective. I feel the same way, there are those that, as you would put it, don't have a clue what's actually going on, which results in negative vibes spreading in their community, we see racism here in Canada too but it's not limited to a single minority but most of them, be it black, chinese, japanese, indian, across the board.
It all stems from people's complete lack of intellect in the subject, it's the redneck mentality, "OH NO HE'S BLACK, HE'S CHINESE, HE'S INDIAN, I MUST HATE HIM NOW!" "TIME FOR ANOTHER BEER!"
I also believe that the universe has unique ways of getting back at these people for being so, for lack of a better word, dumb.
I chuckle at the South Africans that moved here to get away from the blacks just to land up working with minority groups in their companies. Karma in action.
But there's always hope. My partner in crime here in the IT dept is from the Caribbean, we get along fairly well, she's even married to a white guy. Cultures crossing the boundaries in action.
Something to say?