JONATHAN JANSEN: It's time to stop race-shaming those who stand up against Zuma
'The sad and scary truth is that in this part of the continent we turn on our white brothers and sisters when we are unable to change the lot of the poorest among us'
South Africa has a long history of race-shaming. It happens when individuals or groups of people are shamed for the simple fact that they are black. Bodies were lined up and hosed down. Heads were inspected for ticks. Pencils tested the spring-tension of hair. Coons were there to be laughed at. Jokes abound about various ethnic groups. To this day comedians make their money by getting audiences to laugh at people classed as races. Coloured women are readily available material for race shaming, before and after Kuli Roberts despised their very humanity. You would think as South Africans we would know better than to race shame people in 2017.And yet that is exactly what happened when white citizens joined black citizens in country-wide marches against the leadership of our country. An incorruptible minister of finance was shunted in a midnight cabinet reshuffle setting off alarm bells among citizens and financiers alike. One ratings downgrade was about to be followed by another. Publi...
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