[For an update to this post see An apology to my fellow countrymen by Sandile Memela] Would Oscar Pistorius be on trial for murder if Reeva Steenkamp had turned out to be a black man? In fact, on Valentine’s Day last year when Pistorius fired four fatal shots at close range through a locked bathroom […]
Sandile Memela
Sandile Memela is a journalist, writer, cultural critic, columnist and civil servant. He lives in Midrand.
Posted inNews/Politics
We have no white leaders
It is frustration with so-called white leadership, or lack of it, that has made me ask: What has happened to men and women of integrity in our white community? I am talking about leaders of the calibre of Beyers Naude, Braam Fischer and Ruth First. It may just be ignorance on my part but I […]
Posted inNews/Politics
The myth of Mandela the violent liberation war hero
There was never a time when people have spent so much time and energy to reclaim what they think is the correct brand or label of Nelson Mandela — to redefine and project him as a revolutionary fighter. Their efforts are to shatter what they consider the myth of portraying him as a saint or […]
Posted inGeneral
My brother died the same day Mandela died
My brother died. He died on the same day as former president and international icon Nelson Mandela. They both died on December 5 2013. My brother was 65 while Mandela was 95. It was Mandela who lived a long and blessed life despite having spent 27 years of his life in jail. It is a […]
Posted inNews/Politics
We are the ones who will have to be greater than Mandela
You are greater than Mandela. Our greatest strength as a people is when we are at our weakest. Waking up in our humble homes to the news that the founding father of this nation, the great Nelson Mandela has passed on, we were not quite ready to believe that. But over the years, ever since […]
Posted inMedia, News/Politics
Will the real celebrities please stand up?
I have heard people who watch too much TV and listen to the radio ask: What is a celebrity? What makes Pearl Thusi, Kuli Roberts, DJ Sbu, Khanyi Mbau, Kenny Kunene or Phat Joe, for example, a celebrity? I do not have answers to these questions but it would be helpful to look back to […]
Posted inGeneral, Lifestyle, News/Politics
Whiteness is thicker than blood
Mike van Graan’s Rainbow Scars describes the fortunes and destinies of blacks who are raised by whites and those condemned to live in the townships. Much as the play explores relations between a white mother and an adopted black daughter, the most interesting undercurrent is the theme of black identity and whether skin colour is […]
Posted inNews/Politics
How we stopped thinking like Africans
Not so very long ago, as recent as 1977, the exponents of Black Consciousness (BC) taught us that there were two nations in South Africa: one European, oppressive and privileged; the other African, oppressed and dispossessed. The minority Europeans were aware that they were outnumbered by the natives. So, they went out of their way […]
Posted inEquality, News/Politics
The games people play at City Press
The shenanigans of alleged racism at City Press teach us clearly that the media is untransformed in this country. Instead the media professionals from the disadvantaged background now devote their time and energy to fighting over who is a black African and who is not? This battle for power, control and domination among the so-called […]
Posted inGeneral
Drum awards are racist
If ever the media is to speed up the socio-cultural transformation of South African society, this will not be brought about by the perpetuation of race-based thinking. We now have popular magazine Drum launching the “Darling Awards” to “celebrate black excellence”. The much vaunted event is planned for November 7 at Birchwood Estate in Boksburg. […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Tribal identity vanishing fast
Recent debates on tribalism and other related matters have generated more heat than light. Agang SA leader Mamphela Ramphele has reportedly accused the government of sponsoring tribalism to divide the country. At an address to students at Unisa in April this year former president Thabo Mbeki uttered similar remarks that rang alarm bells on the […]
Posted inEquality, News/Politics
Who is black and who is not?
There has not been a time in the history of racial identity in this country when the number of people who describe or define themselves in terms of their race or language group or tribe has been so low. Far too few people continue to see themselves as black (or white even) (8.8%) compared to […]