Latest news with #K-word
The Citizen
10 minutes ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
Ramaphosa asked to take action against ‘racist' minister Gayton McKenzie
Sharing screenshots of his previous posts, some of which included the K-word, many labelled McKenzie a racist and said he needed to resign. Gayton McKenzie's criticism of alleged racial comments made against coloured people has his critics calling for President Cyril Ramaphosa to take action against the Sports minister for previous 'offensive' remarks he has made. McKenzie was among the most vocal critics of Open Chats Podcast hosts who recently claimed that coloured people practice incest and are mentally deranged. The show later issued two apologies for the comments. McKenzie's party, the PA, have opened a case of crimen injuria, and the matter is being investigated by the SA Human Rights Commission. While the outrage has been widespread and across political lines, McKenzie's further criticism of the remarks and claim 'coloureds and blacks are one people being treated differently mistakenly' have created their own storm. McKenzie on Friday claimed many were 'more offended by our outrage as coloured people against the vile racism that was directed at us, you find excuses for these young people who hurt a whole race.' 'You are encouraging future racists instead of nipping this in the bud. We are not you,' he added. As people began sharing offensive and racial slurs that McKenzie had himself made previously, the minister stood firm. 'This whole campaign to find something racist I ever said is hilarious because you have now gone 13 years back and can't bring out one racist thing I ever said. I always and still fight that coloureds and blacks are one people being treated differently mistakenly.' ALSO READ: WATCH: Gayton McKenzie gives update on Open Chats Podcast as Multichoice confirms its removal 'We demand action now!' Sharing screenshots of his previous posts, some of which included the K-word, many labelled McKenzie a racist and said he needed to resign. Former African Transformation Movement (ATM) president and MP Vuyolwethu Zungula was among those who called for President Cyril Ramaphosa to take action against McKenzie. 'Mr President, you appointed a minister who has publicly uttered deeply offensive and despicable words against black people. 'Is this really the vision of unity and inclusivity that the GNU stands for? We demand action now!' Neither McKenzie nor the Presidency has commented on the demands. NOW READ: 'Get your popcorn factory ready' — McKenzie willing to testify at the commission into Mkhwanazi allegations
The South African
13 hours ago
- Politics
- The South African
'Hypocrite': Gayton McKenzie dragged over 'racist' comments
Gayton McKenzie has been branded a 'hypocrite' over his bid for the hosts of the Open Chats Podcast to be cancelled for their 'racist' comments about coloured people. The Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, who is also the leader of the Patriotic Alliance, has condemned the show, which has since been dropped by DStv. The podcast has faced backlash from political parties, high-profile people and the public over claims it perpetuated racial stereotypes. On his X account, Gayton McKenzie called out Open Chats Podcast co-hosts Mthokozisi Donald and Sino Kama and their two female guests. Shortly after DStv shared news that they had dropped the show from their programming, the minister hinted at the presenters being cancelled over their comments. He posted: 'No one wants to see young people destroyed. It, is however, a teachable moment for these young people and their peers that racism has no place in South Africa, to let them continue as if nothing happened is the surest way of destroying them. He added: 'Consequence is a great teacher.' A day earlier, the Gayton vowed to take legal action against the Open Chats Podcast and its broadcaster. He said in a Facebook Live: 'Whoever is in charge of content control didnt see something wrong. 'We are giving you seven days to cancel that show. …You are going to learn. This is where we draw the line'. Senior PA leader Liam Jacobs later opened a case of hate speech and crimen injuria against the podcast presenters. Gayton McKenzie's social media comments about the Open Chats Podcast's presenters became a trending topic. Many South Africans called out the minister for being a 'hyopcrite' for calling out selective racism. Some recalled how he called for South Africans not to 'cancel' former DA MP Renaldo Gouws whose old K-word YouTube videos recently resurfaced. Others pulled up clips of Gayton discussing black people with comments seasoned with racist undertones. Some even reminded fellow South Africans that he was a convicted criminal. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
IOL News
24-07-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Should we criminalise 'Coloured' like the K-word? The answer is complicated
Founder and Leader of PARC, Glen Snyman. Image: Supplied A poster created by the People Against Race Classification (PARC) created quite a stir on social media when it boldly stated, 'Criminalise the word Coloured, just like the K-word'. The PARC's poster has a fiery debate, with some feeling opposite, and saying that while the history of the term is ingrained with trauma, removing the word doesn't go on to address the real systemic issues facing Coloured people. In June, when speaking to the Director at the Centre for Education Rights and Transformation from the University of Johannesburg, Professor June Bam-Hutchison explained that the term 'Coloured' is problematic as it was part of the de-Africanisation process under colonialism, and a dehumanising process under apartheid. ''Coloured' identity is deeply problematic as founded in colonialism and apartheid. Identities are fluid and diverse, and constructed. An adoption of Khoi-San or hybrid ethnic identities within an inclusive South African and African identity is more preferred in existing and contemporary social movements, although there are different articulations. 'It is more about acknowledgement of genocide, and the historical intersecting specificities in oppression that occurred within the early Cape colony (land dispossession, genocide, enslavement). South Africa has not reckoned with these aspects of our painful shared past – yet this history makes up roughly 200 years of our colonial history,' Bam-Hutchison said. The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), the authority on language development in the country, said it acknowledges the concerns raised regarding the use of the term 'Coloured' and the complex historical and social implications associated with it. 'As an organisation mandated to promote and develop languages and foster linguistic diversity, PanSALB recognises the sensitivity of this matter. However, given the ongoing debate and lack of consensus among communities, as well as the legal nature of the question surrounding criminalisation, PanSALB is not in a position to provide an authoritative comment on this issue at this stage,' it said. 'We encourage continued dialogue and engagement among all stakeholders to address these concerns in a manner that promotes mutual respect and understanding.' Founder and Leader of PARC, Glen Snyman, said that in their 15-year history, they have always been against race classification, and the reason behind their campaign to criminalise the word Coloured is that when looking at the history of the word, it shows how damaging it is. 'This word, its history, is as damaged, as distorted, as degrading, as the K-word. We have enough proof, which will cause us to have a successful case in a court of law. We want to have this word criminalised as hate speech. And the reason for that is to encourage and subtly force people to stop the use of the word Coloured... 'We would rather want people to say, use the word bruin mense/brown people,' Snyman said. A poster created by the People Against Race Classification (PARC) created quite a stir on social media when it boldly stated, 'Criminalise the word Coloured, just as like the K-Word'. Image: Supplied 'We want it to be made a crime to call people by that, and it's an educational process. People need to be educated to change the way they talk about other people. When was South Africa educated about the K-word? When did that happen? I don't recall such a time in history. 'Now people know how negative the apartheid government spoke to them about the Coloured word. Marike de Klerk (ex-wife of former South African president FW de Klerk) said they are leftovers, that they are dependent on the white people, and that they are made in the kitchen. That's common knowledge to everyone. To me, the only way to force South Africans to stop this is to make a law. We need to have a law. A law must be made to stop them from using the word,' Snyman said. When asked about decolonisation of the term (the process of freeing an institution, sphere of activity, from the cultural or social effects of colonisation), Snyman said: 'You need to explain to me what the definition of decolonisation, because when I say I'm proudly a K*ff*r, or a H*tkn*t, or I call somebody else a K*ff*r, that would put me in jail. That's a crime. We want the same treatment with the word Coloured. 'Why, after 1994, why did the millions of what they call 'Black People' only criminalise their word, the K-word? Which is an insult to them. What about the three million or so brown people? Why didn't they criminalise the word Coloured as well? 'We feel that 'white people' and 'black people' don't have a say in this because they don't know how it feels to be called Coloured. It's degrading to feel Coloured. Plus, it disguises our true name. We want to be called Khoi-San,' he said. 'COLOURED - How Classification Became Culture' co-author Tessa Dooms, who wrote with Lynsey Ebony Chute, hit back at Snyman's position. In the book, the two challenge the notion that Coloured people do not have a distinct heritage or culture, and delve into the history of Coloured people as descendants of indigenous Africans and as a people whose identity has been shaped by colonisation and slavery, and unpack the racial and political hierarchies these forces created. 'To respond directly to his assertion that compares the word Coloured to the K-word, I reject that outright, and the reason I reject it outright is this. There were demeaning ways to call Coloured people that are equivalent to the K-word. That was never the word 'Coloured'. 'Let's be serious. There was B*esman (Bushman), and there were other derogatory ways to refer to us that are akin to the K-word. That is not the word 'Coloured'. That is like saying that the word Xhosa or Zulu is derogatory. It simply is not. 'The closest equivalence, because it was on the same classification sheet during apartheid, is the word native. If you want to compare it to native, I don't have a problem. 'But to compare it to the K-word is a hyperbolic falsehood for effect. And it's simply unhelpful,' Dooms said. 'If you want to change the classifications or do away with them, then you don't start by doing away with them. You start by doing the work to undo their meaning in people's real lives. 'For as long as being white means a certain life is ascribed to you, and you can attain certain things that other people can't, we must continue to use the word White to point out that privilege. For as long as the word black means that you're going to have certain levels of discrimination, we must continue to use the word black. Co-author of 'COLOURED - How Classification Became Culture' Tessa Dooms. Image: Facebook / Supplied 'In the same way, as long as the word Coloured denotes this kind of marginality from society, we continue to use the word because the word Coloured is also helping us to point out that those things that made that word exist in the first place can exist now. 'People want shortcuts in democracy and transformation. We want to get rid of the words, but not get rid of the systems, and so until we get rid of the systems, we have no business just getting rid of the words,' Dooms said. In conversation with Dooms, it was also highlighted that the terms Snyman seeks to use in its stead, 'Khoi-San' and 'brown people', don't fit what some people understand their heritage to be, and could cause further confusion. Taking to social media for people's thoughts on the matter, this is what others had to say: Tamlyn Hendricks: 'Although there is a lot of sordid history around being coloured. We already have a word that's offensive to us. I have always felt that we, as coloured people, have taken on the word with pride and are trying very hard to uncover our vast and extensive history around it. It doesn't offend, nor do I think it should be criminalised. I do think that more conversations around this need to be had, though, and more information should be uncovered and made available for people to try and learn.' Ashly Schoeman: 'I personally don't find the term offensive at all. I'm proud of my family and heritage; however, if I'm being honest, I don't really care much how race is classified, especially not the name/label. Call me what you want, my heritage and culture will stay the same. 'I've always thought that fitting someone into a racial box and then further dividing them into different types of coloured people, for example, causes more harm than good, creating a rift between people of the same race. Colourism is a bigger issue, in my opinion. I don't imagine changing a name will solve any of these problems. 'Painting the house a different colour without addressing issues with the foundation is a waste of time.' [email protected]
The South African
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The South African
Steve Hofmeyr defends K-word video: 'I need my words, flag back'
Steve Hofmeyr has defended a viral video of him saying that he wants the K-word and the old South African flag to return. This, amid his outrage that the struggle song Kill The Boer continues to be sung. The Afrikaans singer has often courted controversy over his views on racism, which he believes is directed at white South African farmers. Last week, a video of Steve Hofmeyr ranting about wanting to use the K-word went viral. On social media, many South Africans were shocked at the singer's desire to use openly racist symbols. On the X platform, one user claimed that Steve's comparison of the racial slur and the struggle song had no merit. @dramadelinquent posted: 'You know Steve Hofmeyr wanting to use the K word and the Apartheid rag because you're mad that the EFF sings songs about killing people, makes you no different to them'. The Afrikaans entertainer responded to the post: 'Yes. I'm an artist. I need my words back, as well as my songs, flags, history, monuments, and taboo expressions.' He continued: 'I'm a free speech absolutist (save for incitement to violence). Poets need to live where others don't care to look, said Ben Okri. I can't do that on prescribed notions'. Over the weekend, author Khaya Dlanga posted a video of Steve Hofmeyr ranting about his lack of freedom of speech. The video was initially uploaded on his Facebook account in March, when AfriForum had been denied an appeal by the Constitutional Court to declare the struggle song Kill The Boer hate speech. EFF leader Julius Malema continues to sung the song, despite mixed reactions from the public. Steve Hofmeyr raged in the video of his 'freedoms' being taken away, including a racial slur. He said, 'I want blackface back. The right to paint my face any colour I want. I want the K-word back, as well as every word that I had to remove from my vocabulary. I want cultural appropriation back….I want insults back… He added, 'I want songs and flags back. Is there such a place for us in the future? I hope so.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 . Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp , Facebook , X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
The South African
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The South African
Steve Hofmeyr: 'I want the K-word back'
Afrikaans singer and activist Steve Hofmeyr has sparked backlash over a video of him raging over his inability to say the K-word, or use the old South African flag. The entertainer has often come under fire over his controversial views about race, politics, and crime in South Africa. In a video that has recently resurfaced and has sparked backlash on social media, Steve Hofmeyr speaks his mind on freedom of speech. When he uploaded the video on his Facebook account, AfriForum had been denied an appeal by the Constitutional Court to declare the struggle song Kill The Boer hate speech. EFF leader Julius Malema has often sung the song to mixed reactions from the public. Steve Hofmeyr raged in the video of his 'freedoms' being taken away, including a racial slur. He said: 'I want blackface back. The right to paint my face any colour I want. I want the K-word back, as well as every word that I had to remove from my vocabulary. I want cultural appropriation back….I want insults back… He added: 'I want songs and flags back – is there such a place for us in the future? I hope so'. On social media, South Africans had plenty to say… Some, like author Khaya Dlanga, were shocked. He posted on X: 'Steve Hofmeyr is upset that he can't use the K word without being criminally charged'. Others like @bitcoinboetza believed Steve's comments were also 'freedom of speech', like the song Kill The Boer. Like US President Donald Trump and Pretoria-born billionaire businessman Elon Musk, Steve Hofmeyr has been outspoken about South Africa's 'white genocide' against farmers. He's also publicly condemned Julius Malema for singing Kill The Boer and has supported Afrikaners who have sought 'refugee' status in the US. Steve posted on X: 'SA minorities have refugee status thanks to Malema's death-speech and Ramaphosa's race-hustle'. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 . Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp , Facebook , X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
