The Unbowed Conscience

The Unbowed Conscience   By: Lauren Anne

The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have tried for a long time to keep my nose out of such politics, but the time has come for me to weigh in on the growing race debate. There is so much racial (or should I rephrase to cultural?) tension bubbling over everywhere (internationally not just in South Africa) and as a young person, it is shameful that I hide my head in the sand like an ostrich, in the hopes that everything will just blow over in time.

I write this from the perspective of a young white South African and I mean not to undermine or gloss over our country’s turbulent history (predominantly the fault of the white man) but please understand, that I did not condone or by any means support the oppressive colonial rule. I did not support or condone the Apartheid regime, slavery or the genocide of the native residents that took place in many of the colonised regions all over the world. Yet, as a white South African in 2016, I seem still to take the blame for all of these crimes, regardless of the fact that I, personally, played no part in these historical events.

Nobody chooses their race or into which country they are born - I personally wouldn’t have chosen white because I feel like it has automatically stamped me with the label of being a bad person, because of the actions of my ancestors and this label has detracted from any opportunity I may have to prove otherwise. I don't really think it is fair that this is so, since I had absolutely no part in the actions of said ancestors, however, I have spent 27 years feeling guilty for being born white, which is about as useful as me feeling guilty about being a female or being adopted - I had control over none of these things and therefore it is futile to feel guilty about them.

I was not raised to be a racist, I was raised to treat every person from every walk of life with the same level of respect and dignity and yet, before I have even opened my mouth, I have been judged as white and therefore a racist and bad person. Not every person from a particular race is the same (there are criminals and humanitarians from every race) - stereotypes, both good and bad impact negatively on society and its potential for growth. All people of all races have the potential to be good or evil, it's not about race or religion, it's about mind set and I'm sorry, but speaking hateful words about another race or religion is a display of ignorance.

Every time I hear another story about another white person who has made another racist remark to fuel the already burning fire in our country, I hang my head in shame, these people are so misguided, they do not realise that so much hate can only end in tragedy. In the same breath, when I hear black people talking about “making all the whites leave” and returning Africa to the “true African people” it angers me, because I was born in South Africa, my heart beats to Africa’s rhythm and I hold no citizenship or passport to any other country. This is my home, by birth and there is no place that I would rather be. What makes you African is not as simple as the colour of your skin. I am getting a little tired of being told that I must leave - both by fellow whites running in fear and the black individuals who keep reminding every white African resident that they do not belong here. This makes for a very uncertain existence.

Instead of perpetuating flawed logic and failed systems we need to be working together on viable solutions and ending the race debate in South Africa, in Africa and all over the world. The past cannot be changed, history cannot be re-written and there is nothing that we, the current generation, can do to change the misguided actions of our forefathers (no matter how much guilt or anger we hold on to).

Anyone who believes differently is welcome to their opinion, however, this does not change the simple fact that we all live in an already racially diverse world and by holding on to racism and ethnocentrism you are participating in holding mankind as a species back from a peaceful, harmonious existence. This is not to suggest that we forget the past but to rather suggest that we set our sights and focus our energy on the future, as this is the only way to bring about any change for the better. All we can learn from history, is that we haven’t learnt much at all if we continue down the path we are currently walking. It is not too late for humanity to put aside their differences in an attempt to create a brighter future, and the only way to do so is to stop recreating the past.






Stop seeing colour and religion as barriers to peace and love and start seeing all people as one: capable of feeling love, pain, joy and sorrow equally. Each and every one of us is human – we all have that in common. Every person who spends the night without food will get hungry, every person who spends the night without shelter will get cold and every person who loses a loved one will grieve – the colour of one’s skin will not change the outcome of any of these things. Instead of fighting over race and religion we should be working together to fight hunger, sickness, poverty, illiteracy, corruption, and abuse – these are real threats to humanity and if we can solve these problems together, we will have a very bright future indeed.

=============================

Bio

Lauren Anne was born in Durban and grew up in KwaZulu-Natal. She is a part-time student in her third year of a BA in Communication Science and works as a junior journalist for a small property publication. Her passions are art, photography and writing and she hopes to pursue a career in photojournalism on completion of her studies.