Confronting the roots of racism: a call for white accountability
As South Africa confronts its racial past, Ambassador Carl Niehaus calls for white accountability in dismantling racism, urging white South Africans to take decisive action and support the ongoing struggle for equality.
Racism persists not because black people have fought long enough, but because those who created and benefit from it have not yet decided to stop. The responsibility to end racism lies with white people, who must confront and defeat the racism that exists among them. The struggle of black people, while heroic and indispensable, will remain incomplete until white people acknowledge and take action against the racism that continues to shape society.
Black South Africans have resisted white domination since the first colonial invasions, enduring wars of dispossession, the colour bar, apartheid, and ongoing racial power struggles. The Black Consciousness Movement, led by Steve Biko, recognized that black people cannot wait for white goodwill or leadership to secure their freedom.
Biko emphasized that black people must be on their own, rejecting white moral lecturing and demanding psychological liberation. He warned against the illusion that white liberals or radicals could lead the struggle, insisting that the final responsibility for ending racism rests with white people. White organisations that promote white grievance and exclusivism, such as AfriForum and Solidarity, must be confronted without apology.
Similarly, projects that create racially exclusive academic spaces must be opposed as they contradict non-racial and egalitarian commitments. Racism remains a living force in South Africa, shaping land ownership, corporate boardrooms, media narratives, and social networks. White people must reject white liberalism and actively work to dismantle these racist structures.
Written by urgent.news from IOL's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
