Our country is one of many paradoxes: resilient yet fragile; extremely brutal at times, yet unsurpassingly kind at others. Over the last two weeks, the xenophobic attacks have reminded me of this delicate balance .
I was also reminded of the power of words, and how unwisely chosen words have the power to fuel much hatred. I felt powerless as all my middle-class self was capable of doing was to take to social media channels to tweet, share and like. Hardly helpful when others feared for their lives – and how many likes or retweets their stories got was, I suspect, entirely irrelevant to them. I’m not dismissing the importance of awareness – it too has a role – but rather expressing frustration over the utter inability to help when people’s lives were/ are at risk. It was encouraging to see how many other South Africans felt the same: horrified, ashamed and heartbroken. We haven’t lost our hearts.
To find out how you can help the victims of xenophobia, visit PLEASED TO MEET YOU for the rest of this blog written by our passionate Project Manager, Simone.
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