Another Sharpeville Day!

This blog owes its existence to the memory of Sharpeville Day (now crassly referred to as human rights day). Actually the name is not as crass as the politics that gives credence to renaming a day that is a turning point in the road that leads to Nelson Mandela being an icon to the exclusion of all others. By all accounts and from all points of view, this was a huge day!

As a student I organised the commemoration of this day in the residence where I lived. That was a long time ago. Long before the name was changed to human rights day. Back in the day when Black people knew who they were and no one, I mean nobody, was a “so-called” anything.

The commemoration was a short and small affair. Tim Hughes (as he then was) gave the keynote address or was it a talk, a lecture? He was imminently qualified for the task. Yes, he was a white Masters student at the time. The point of the commemoration was for us to hear, to debate and to learn. Tim outdid himself and the evening went well. To the surprise of the detractors, we did not after the affair go on a rampage to attack white students in our residence or cause any public disturbance or any other kind of disturbance. We hung around, chatted a little and retired to the pub.

Even back then, Sharpeville Day was a lesser of the other struggle days. It was a day students took off to catch up with life or to catch up with their studies or whatever else that may have go away from them. Then again this should be no surprise; Africanists were never a big deal. Do you remember that Africanist Lumumba? It all goes back to that house in Orlando West and the decisions that followed. The stand-off between the two groups, ready to kill each other over a disagreement (even enlist common thugs with guns in their fight for being the right organisation). It is so however that we tell the stories from our point of view - this is mine.

This Sharpeville Day comes when a lot has changed since those men and women lay sprawled life-less in the open veld in front of the Sharpeville police station. Back then the Pan Africanist Congress was a movement to be reckoned with. Tomorrow, when the day dawns on Sharpeville Day 2011, the PAC will be but a name in the memories of those who like me, wish for a different tomorrow. Such is the triumph of the non-racial project. How do you say BEE in non-racial language? Well, you say it the same way that you say that human rights day commemorates those who were killed on 21 March 1960. Such is the defeat of the anti-racist project.

Tomorrow will once again come with all the fanfare of rights and non-racialism – all born of the blood of those who would rather have anti-racism. Tomorrow will showcase all the values that have held Africa captive for all the years and will continue to do so going forward. These are the values that apparently seek to be inclusive of all South Africans. That they achieve inclusiveness at the expense of the majority of South Africans is just detail. It is reported that the President invited the leader of the opposition to join him at one of the events tomorrow. She turned him down. She will be addressing an event of her own, galvanising her supporters to protect the human rights that under the ANC government are under threat. She will as usual scare the electorate into voting for her party or at least try. All in all, tomorrow will be fun, as it has been the last 16 or so years.

I will in all probability be a bystander through all of the fanfare of tomorrow. I better be careful though; it is reported that the first victim of the 21 March 1960 massacre was a bystander who was on his way to work.

It's election time - Participate!

Some 22 years ago on a university campus, there reigned a policy of non-participation. This policy was imposed by a black students' organisation on the basis that all organisations and fora then in existence on this particular campus, were creation of white liberals and black students should not legitimise them by participating in such reactionary formations.

As is usually the case in the course of such noble struggles, some break rank. As it turned out 3 black students broke rank and stood for elections to participate in the house committee of the residence they stayed in. The 3 souls were promptly branded traitors and coconuts and all manner of other names. They were worse than the oppressors - they were collaborators!

As is further usually the case in these matters, the white students in that residence, true to their liberal non-racial values, promptly adopted the 3sum and volunteered their services as campaign managers, speech writers and pamphleteers. All 3 were duly elected to the house committee and as with most things South African, they became the first, the trailblazers, the traitors.

In the meantime the 3 bore and endured the brunt of coconut-hood. It was quite a surprise when a year later, the organisation that advocated non-participation, decided on the mother of all participations - it had candidates stand for SRC elections. And that is how the university got its first black SRC president - a comrade and activist educated at St. Johns College.

These more than 2 decades old incidents, continue to intrigue me. The argument of the 3 coconuts was that they could not but participate in the house committee because this is where they lived. If they do not participate they deprive themselves of the opportunity of influencing what happens where they live. After they were elected to the house committee the annual formal dance theme was changed from "Cotton Club" to "District Six".

Fast-forward to 2011 and the local elections. This is where we live and if we do not participate then we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to influence the decisions about our respective and different homes. The trick and difference between then and now is that we participate only in groups and never as individuals.

Somewhere in Luthuli House a list will be prepared of the appropriate cadres who will then be presented for endorsement by the people to occupy the various positions in the various municipal councils. Of course, these cadres will be presented to the communities for vetting before they are put up for election. Whatever the spin that is put on this, the ability of any given cadre is considered only if s/he is indeed a cadre. You are cadre first then a servant of the community second. This is not such an issue because the community is all for cadres anyways otherwise the community is just made up of agents. The will of the people is the will of the cadres and of the people is of the cadres.

So, don't miss the opportunity to participate! When the cadres are paraded for your consideration and approval - remember to disapprove when you don't believe the cadre to be up to it. This is about where you live, where the water should be available and clean. Where the refuse must be fetched regularly and sewage treated.

One more thing, make sure the cadre lives where s/he serves, it is the right thing to do.