On whiteness and white guilt
There is a refrain that is often heard around the braai or the water cooler, and it goes like this: “Why should I have to apologise for apartheid? I wasn’t a part of it/was only a child/wasn’t yet...
View ArticleNow is a good time for South African whites to show courage
I can sum up my feelings over the last 20 years of democracy in South Africa as being a progression of emotions, from concern (pre 1994) to euphoria (elections) to “this is not so bad” to “quite...
View ArticleNot all pale-skinned people are ‘white’
In certain circles I could suggest, “the real problems of the world are those caused by white masculine capitalist hegemony!” I might get a few heads to nod. I could then assert, “Down with white...
View ArticleUnpacking ‘whiteness’
My last post “Whiteness is like herpes” did exactly what I thought it would. It resonated with a small number of fellow whites who correctly understood the analogy, and then provoked an angry reaction...
View ArticleThank you Penny
A preamble: just as Penny Sparrow does not speak for me, I do not speak for any of you. But I am hoping that some of you will at least listen, and think, and reflect. As a white South African, I’d like...
View ArticleThe unbearable whiteness of being a middle-aged Afrikaans male
When I was recently asked to perform a few of my songs at the private birthday party of an old fan from the Voëlvry era, I agreed. “I don’t like performing at private parties, but at least these people...
View ArticleWhiteness – it must be possible to transcend black and white divisions (Part 2)
In many ways, this is a time of awakening. I should say “rude awakening”, because the awakening I am speaking of holds many unpleasant surprises. With “awakening”, I mean the sensation of seeing...
View ArticleKingsolver’s narrative indictment of colonisation: The Poisonwood Bible
I have written about Barbara Kingsolver’s (and other figures’, such as Salman Rushdie’s) novelistic art here before and even referred to The Poisonwood Bible cursorily — but recently the effect of...
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Of monuments and men
A visual reading of the “Monumentaal” concert’s flyer raises questions about Afrikaner masculinity and celebrations of heritage
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Use black agencies to target black consumers
We shouldn’t just copy all our concepts from the West and paste them for African consumption
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The parable of the lost Afrikaner son
I am a white, Afrikaans-speaking queer, the antithesis of what my family and church stood for. My identity crisis led to my identity formation
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Novak Djokovic and the hierarchy of whiteness
Is the disparaging treatment meted out to the Serb because he is not considered white enough by the West?
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