Don't blame racist students -- blame their parents

Just a week ago a young white male was mercilessly beaten at the University of Johannesburg by other white males for standing with a black girl. In February, the same university had an incident of a black male forced into a cold shower for some four hours. Now another race driven incident repeats itself, in the same university and in the same campus. Something sinister is at play here!

The assault on this young white male further confirms the long held suspicion that the University of Pretoria, the University of Stellenbosch, the University of Free State and the University of Johannesburg Kingsway (Former RAU) campus have appointed themselves as the defenders of racial chauvinism. This is found in their residence placement policies that promote segregation and humiliation far surpassing the plans of the Boeremag itself!

These universities have provided a safe heaven for racism and have acted as liberated zones for Afrikaner chauvinism right under the dusty noses of the Department of Education and its minister, Naledi Pandor. Of course, not all Afrikaners are in agreement with the tendencies of these groupings in the universities who have the support of the Freedom Front Plus. Most White South Africans, including Afrikaners, profess non–racialism; therefore several questions need to be asked.

Why is it that many white, but particularly Afrikaner, students in universities are notorious for racist attitudes and practices despite the defeat and collapse of apartheid? Why is it that these students have not grown oblivious of racial chauvinism and still persist in the manner their parents treated us blacks, in the past? Some might be tempted to say David Bullard’s articles did the trick, I think not. I am convinced the answers lie elsewhere. This is not to deny that David Bullard’s articles might have played a role, however…

The National Party, since 1948, won back to back elections until 1989 without any accusations of vote rigging. The voters of the racist National Party are still alive and well. Most have deflected to the Democratic Alliance. Some are hiding behind the woodwork of the Freedom Front Plus. Many of the National Party voters supported the NP as a result of its segregationist and racist policies. There is no way that they have repented and become born again and suddenly become non–racist. They are still racist as ever!

Despite the fact that many university students were born between 1983 and 1989 and may have no personal experience of apartheid, and are supposed to act in a non–racist manner, this is not the case. Their parents do not accord them that opportunity. They do their best to impart on their children what they suppose should be the status quo. They teach them the most hideous of racist rituals so as to ensure that they fix it firmly in the young white child that he is superior to blacks, despite the teachings of society to the contrary. The blame lies squarely with the parents and the untransformed grannies and daddies of the old apartheid order, not with the kids!

Wolves of the apartheid order are lecturing in the universities. They have found safe heavens within the woodwork of the UOFS, UJ, UP and Stellenbosch. They continue to lodge and hide behind the curtains of our universities, imparting racism to every Afrikaner child that sets foot there. Institutional autonomy remains their strongest shield against the advances of the democratic government, which is often too weak and toothless to take on these organized factions.

Racist incidents in these universities are so constant that they could even result in vigilante type responses that could lead to injuries of innocent black and white kids who may find themselves crossing paths with angry mobs who seek to impose justice on their own terms and methods. At the same time, the Department of Education shall continue to send commission after commission and when it’s too late they will wish they acted earlier.