What does it mean to be South African? This is a question that has been haunting me in the wake of xenophobic – should we say afrophobic – online abuse directed at Miss South Africa hopeful Chidimma Adetshina. Despite being born in South Africa to a South African mother, her Nigerian surname has provoked a backlash that questions her right to represent South Africa in a beauty pageant . This reaction not only tarnishes our reputation as the “rainbow nation” but also challenges the very essence of what it means to be South African.
South Africa has always been a melting pot of nationalities. As a nation, we are like a chakalaka, a biryani, or a potjie that comes together and mixes into a flavourful bowl of diverse cultures, languages, and ethnicities. The Freedom Charter, a cornerstone of our democracy, unequivocally states that “South Africa belongs to all who live in it”.
There is a reason the writers of the Freedom Charter did not say “South Africa belongs to all who were born it” as this foundational principle is a call to embrace our diversity and reject narrow-minded nationalism. The online vitriol directed at Adetshina exposes a disturbing vein of xenophobia and a regressive view of national identity. The comments online have been ugly and those who have spewed the hate should hang their heads in shame as such comments reveal a dangerous nationalistic undertone that threatens our social cohesion.
Such sentiments are not only misguided but also perilous i.