This is a zebra. Isn't he beautiful? The zebra is such a majestic animal because of his interwoven black and white stripes. The contrast between these colors and the unique pattern they make along the zebra's body is a truly beautiful sight. Wouldn't the zebra look a lot less beautiful without his stripes? He would certainly look more plain; more dull; less stunning. The zebra is perfect just the way he is.
I start off this post by looking at how beautiful the zebra is because the zebra's beauty wouldn't be possible without his interwoven stripes of black and white. Similarly, we, as a human race wouldn't be as beautiful, as stunning, as comprehensive, or as vast without our many colors.
For many people, race is a difficult topic to discuss. It can be sensitive, uncomfortable, and chilling. But the topic of race can't be ignored. Especially in Cape Town, South Africa.
On my very first day of internship, Sashley and Arnold gave me a tour of the UWC campus. On that tour, they briefly showed me where the Robben Island museum was on campus, which documented the history of the apartheid regime in South Africa and the difficult road to democracy since the end of apartheid in 1994. I have not yet had the opportunity to spend additional time exploring the Robben Island museum on campus, but I plan to very soon to learn more about apartheid. But, anyway, it was very evident from that very first day of my internship that race can be a sensitive and important in the lives of South Africans, particularly as a result of apartheid.
Sashley told me on this first day that South Africa has Blacks, Whites, Coloureds, and Indians, as well as foreign immigrants from all over the African continent and abroad. When I first heard this racial demographic breakdown, my initial reaction was full of confusion and shock. Based upon my experiences in the States, the term "Colored" was not appropriate, but in fact, often implied a derogatory connotation, from what I understood. I explained this to Sash, who identifies as being Coloured, and she confirmed that Coloured is not a derogatory term in South Africa, but a common racial classification.
The apartheid regime was a racial classification system legalized by the National Party in South Africa, which curtailed the rights of Blacks within the country and allowed for White supremacy. The National Party leaders during this time argued that South Africa did not comprise a single nation, but was made up of four distinct racial groups; White, Black, Coloured, and Indian. From these four racial groups, the country was split into thirteen racial nations and a legislation called the Population Registration Act (1950) required all people over the age of 18 to carry an identification card that indicated their racial classification, which was determined by an external board. Based upon these racial classifications, people were forcefully removed in the 1960s-1980s from their current residency to one designated for their racial group. This was especially troubling for families of Coloured people, whose members were often classified into different racial groups and forced to separate to different racial nations.
Additional legislation during apartheid was very unjust and created further racial segregation; the Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act (1949) prohibited marriages of people from different racial groups; the Immorality Act (1953) made it a criminal offense to have sexual relations with a person of another racial group; and the Reservation of Separate Amenities Act (1953) made it legal to create separate municipalities for different races, such as schools, buses, and hospitals. These is much more history and additional legislation that is critical to the history of apartheid in South Africa, but I am still learning.
Apartheid was dismantled in a series of negotiations from 1990 to 1993, which culminated in the election of Nelson Mandela in 1994; this was the first election in South Africa to involve universal suffrage. (Yes, I did use Wikipedia to verify I remembered these facts of Apartheid correct).
Now that I have provided some background and context about the extreme segregation of races during apartheid, it is pretty easy to understand why racial classification and the topic of race in general is still of importance to South Africans. Even today in America, hundreds of years after the abolition of slavery, there are still sometimes inter-racial tensions and challenges. Although I do not think I have any racially discriminatory tendencies, I am still learning what my "White privilege" is and how that plays into my perception of and behaviors within the world around me. But what is very different here in South Africa, is that the oppressive apartheid regime ended in 1994--only 18 years ago. Therefore, there are still generations of people who were a part of apartheid regime and still have memories from this era that affect their perception of the world today and what they teach the youth in their family. Since apartheid is still so fresh in people's minds, race continues to be of high importance to most South Africans I have encountered. By no means am I implying that South Africans are racist--I have not experienced hostility toward me as a White person, nor have I seen any racist acts. However, I do witness a lot of "clicks" forming between members of the same race and have noticed that racial identification is very important to the people with which I interact.
I wanted to spend some time reflecting a bit about the topic of race for a few reasons. Firstly, I am helping to facilitate the Advanced Leaders Programme this week, in which we are discussing diversity and power for leadership. For ALP, we are going to the District 6 Museum (recognizing one of the 13 districts during apartheid) and will be having several discussions, activities, and sessions in which I am sure the topic of race will be brought up. I am really excited to learn about this topic from the perception of members of a generation who were born during apartheid but were raised during post-apartheid. Secondly, race is of significant cultural importance in South Africa, so I wanted to address it. And thirdly, I have had some interesting (and humorous) interactions while here in South Africa because of my race.
A few weeks ago, Tim and I went to the twenty-first birthday party for a student with Sashley. The party was running behind schedule, so we sat in the car for some time waiting for the party to begin. The party was located at the student's home in a township, and the streets were bustling with many people, all of whom were Black. While we waited in the car, several groups of children and young adults walked by the car, and many of them would do a double-take when they saw Tim and I. They stared at us, not in an angry or judging way, but more out of shock; it almost felt like we were the first White people these children had ever seen. Some of the younger children would smile and wave, and would get very excited when we waved back. Even when we were in the big tent for the party, a young boy popped his head in to investigate. Once he saw us sitting at a table, his eyes lit up and he left to retrieve four other boys and pointed us out to them. They all then continued to wave and dance to get our attention. I always smile and wave back to the children who point at us, but it does make me laugh how candid children are!
Last week, I went to a pretty crowded bar with a couple of my friends. There were only two White people in the bar--me and one other man. A few minutes after we got to the bar, I was standing with my friends waiting to get a drink, and a Black man who was standing next to me bumped into me to say "hi". I said "hi" back, but then I could not believe his next move.
He pinched my nose, tickled it, and then said something to the effect of "cute little white nosey".
I had no words. I wasn't sure whether to laugh, to say "thank you", or to be incredibly freaked out. I am pretty sure I just turned and walked away. I'm not sure why that moment was so awkward for me, but it definitely was. I think this was one of the first times in my life that not only was I the sole individual who looked different than everyone else, but that someone of the majority population then pointed it out in a way that made me feel slightly uncomfortable, different, and unwelcome.
This experience reminded me of what is called a "racial micro-aggression". In our Environments (6030) class last semester, I did a group project researching how to create positive educational environments for students who are African American. I reviewed many articles that described how campus climates can be "chilly" (hostile or uninviting) for African American students. I also read a lot about how African American students can experience "racial micro-aggressions", which are essentially small bouts of racism that occur as a result of simple, yet unwelcoming, reminders by a member of the majority population that a member of the minority population is different. For example, if I as a White woman ask an African American woman to touch her hair, that a racial micro-aggression toward that person; even if my intention was not to be negative or offensive, it still belittles or demeans that individual and makes her feel uncomfortable.
So, yes, I think the moment in the bar where the Black man next to me tickled my "cute white little nosey" was my first experience similar to that of a racial micro-aggression.
But no worries, I am pleased to be in a location by which my race is not the majority. I think this experience is very unique, particularly because the Western Cape has a much smaller population of White people most other South African provinces, which is helping me gain a new perspective and understanding of myself and others. It is a phenomenal learning experience and a wonderful opportunity to reflect on my past experiences and culture, as well as alter the lens through which I see the world.
With love,
Kaity
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