Where would we all be had apartheid not existed...?

Question

Try being cheerful if you're going to respond...
Here's my "dream"... Whites could also speak some of the official languages eg. zulu, xhosa, sotho...etc.
Blacks wouldn't have had a problem learning their new visitors language nor Afrikaans.
We'd learn about their culture and they'd learn about ours...
They'd also adopt black names, and schools set up would teach not only the white ways but every other races way...
Imagine we dressed like Indians, lived in Huts that had taps and electricity and that was a huge norm...etc... (I can dream cant I?)

To be fair Poepies... I dont mind the rest of your dream, but at least black people try, what about the hordes of white people who cant pronounce any of the words spoken in black languages? How many black languages can you speak fluently? And going through all this to be at a convenience to you...? Imagine if I came to you speaking in Tswana because my english is bad..see? Makes sense dont you think ... (",)

PS: would it have made any difference had I started with "Black"? You woke up the wrong side of your bed today girl... This question wasnt even meant to be racist... it see's a mixture of all races, cultures to form one or at least a civilisation that gets along... (Gee I didnt know I'd get on a PMS-ing nerve...sorry for saying "white" first...)

Thank you General... (",)

Bull you silly man!!! We could've been going on now in Tswana - I'm from Rusty Dusty myself

Answer 1

Good question, Innocentia. I suppose that my dream would have been better education for everybody, South Africans are known as hard workers, if we had the education to go with it, we could have been really on top of the world. As it is, not that many people can afford to go to university etc. Secondly - a LOT less crime. Once again, SA is an amazingly beautiful country, if we could promote tourism with a clean conscience, that could have been a top destination, obviously bringing in a lot of money.

Although I love our diverse cultures, for me to really support it, all cruelty to animals must be remove from that. I don't think it slightly entertaining when animals get slaughtered slowly and in a lot of pain because of some tradition. But luckily that is only a very small part of it all. Many people may see blacks as one, but the different cultures within that group is astonishing. I always loved it when my dad explained to me all these little things, like why some black men walk in front of their woman, or sit in view of the door, but don't knock, etc. etc. There are just so much we can learn from each other.

Poepies and smiley... this is Innocentia's dream. How can you criticize her for that? That is the way she see things, and I actually think it will benefit all of us to learn more languages, even if you don't speak it perfectly, at least you are able to communicate with that many more people? I think your comments were unfair.

Answer 2

My brother is now 14years old and he can speak both Zulu and sotho and you know what is the funny thing i have notice is that when he talks to the sotho's in Zulu they cant understand a word and the other way around.
I think that blacks should also do some effort to try and learn the Afrikaans language the black people have this attitude that now that they rule the country they dont have to learn other languages.
If you do yourself a favor go and do some research and you will see that all farmers men, woman and children is able to speak one of the african languages which is not true in the bigger cities. In the farming communities the black people can also talk afrikaans and yet again in the bigger cities the black people cant. I think that everyone that lives in the big cities can learn something from the farm communities
And the other thing is that whites stays with their culture black people are struggling to do that, and i think that is the reason why so many young children gets in to crime etc because they dont have their roots any more
I living my dream in South Africa although I live in fear everyday. South Africa is the place where i want to be.

Answer 3

Apartheid was an evil akin to Nazism, and, let's face facts, it's the root cause of a great deal of the turmoil in South Africa now. That's no excuse, mind you, one has to live in the present for the future.

Interesting question. Let's not forget, at the time it was instituted, all Western countries, USA included, had some form of apartheid, which is what the civil rights movement in America was about.
Had the NP not come into power in 1948 and started their campaign of forced removals, Group Areas etc... I think we would have seen something quite unique in the world.
Because of the mix of cultures, with the technology and industrial innovations brought by white settlers and the sheer weight of numbers of the blacks already here, it would have been in everone's interests to create an alliance.
I think South Africa could quite possibly have led the world in the breaking down of cultural barriers and inevitable integration.
There is no such thing as 'separate but equal.'
With the mineral wealth at South Africa's disposal, the country could quite possibly have developed into a superpower, on a footing with the USA.

Great question.

Answer 4

I think everyone in the country except for idiots such as Watzzup who I believe is actually nothing other than a bitter ex Zimbabwean, wish we could all have a future together in peace with equal sharing of wealth and opportunities, what frustrates most of us is the fact that those desires don't seem to be shared by the ruling ANC.
I agree that white people should make more of an effort to learn a black language, I was schooled in Rustenburg and learnt Tswana for 5 years, I unfortunately dont remember any of my lessons.

Answer 5

Sawubona Sisi!

Thanks for your question -- very interesting!!Where would we be if Apartheid didn't exist?? Who knows!! But it DID happen, and it happened for a reason (that's what i always say!) People, especially the blacks went through such tough times and i wish we could just get past it all. In my opinion, apartheid does still exist in some areas (like on my campus where i study)... the whites hang out by the canteen and the blacks by the library and it's like a 'rule' not to mix. Whatever!!! It's really sad. I'm studying to be a teacher and have had black and white kids in my class. I love it because kids don't see colour. It's amazing to watch. I always say i learn something new from these kids every day... that was one which i think about all the time! Ah... i don't know. That is a really cool dream, and i back you up 100%!

Don't let poepies get to you!

Sala hantle
P.S. Stick around! Peace!

Answer 6

Bull: I can't believe you - five years down the drain! But maybe you should start afresh

To the asker - I don't think I would be where I'm now - I mean geographically. Maybe we would have ctreated a greater country where all lived prosperously and interacted freely without prejudice. It would haven't taken me to leave Joburg to come to the Western Cape before I could make sense of Afrikaans as a language. Maybe I could have been Brad's business partner. Maybe all our people could have lived in brotherhood, enjoying equal rights and opportunities. Maybe black people would be having the aparthedi scars and white people wouldn't be feeling discriminate against as is now.

Maybe there wouldn't be the ANC, DA, ID, IFP etc as they are now. Maybe we wouldn't have learned from other nations, during exile days, on being a generally humble nation we are.

Maybe we would have won soccer world cup, and be counted amongst the great football nations. Maybe we would have won the cricket and not suffer pains eveytime we play against the Ausies.

Maybe we would now be one of the most hated nation by other nations of the world as we could be playing world police. There are so many maybe.

And, hey, thanks for bringing some lightness in this section. We are two tense here. People see rabbits under every tree!

Answer 7

I much better place - every position in government and commerce would have been filled with a person qualified to do the job - no matter the skin colour. I might have family called Bongani or Tanzile

I have to admit if there is one thing that I wished they implemented when I was still at school it would be the addition of the local language that is currently in place.

Not that it is to late, anyone interested in teaching me Zulu?


P.S. I wouldn't mind keeping a couple of sheep and a cow in my back yard either!!

Answer 8

Peopies, wake up!! Are you taking lessons from alf now?

Wow!! What a question Innocentia!! Well, hon, I can only see South Africa ruling the whole continent, (even Nigeria's oil would have been under our control, he he he). On the real though, my mother, father and most of my family and myself wouldn't be where we are now or taken the businesses we are in now. But we would probably have made it much better and easier had it not been for the hardship we all had to go through trying to get financial independence. But can you imagine growing up in living with Indians, whites and coloureds. Playing '3 tin' and 'shumpu' and 'ari-gogo' on the drive way together? Those are ball games played by girls in KZN by the way. Wow!!! That would surely be something wouldn't? You've got me dreaming now...

Answer 9

I like your dream and think you must hang onto it. Positive dreams are needed to get over the divisions of the past. Those that cling to to those divisions will be left behind as the world becomes more homogenous.
I noticed you mention you speak seTswana. Botswana's first president, Sir Seretse Khama, married a white woman who was accepted by his tribe as queen. Now that's what I call gracious and civilised - the acceptance of a foreigner as one of their own.
So to answer your question .... we would be a lot further down the road of acceptance had apartheid not occurred. Ho hum, I guess there's lot of catching up to do.

Answer 10

Dumela ma. Alas, in a perfect world...
We as black and white Africans have more in common than we think.
While being an overland safari guide, I took groups of foreigners, mostly Europeans and North Americans, deep into the Okavango in northern Botswana, with the assistance of local men and women. At night the locals made a separate camp and fire about 30 meters from the foreigners' camp (by their own choice). I often felt the need to spend time at my fellow Africans' (me - Afrikaner; they - Hambukushu) fire than at the cacophony of first world ignorance where my clients were.
Do those who judge our Africanism on skin colour alone, realise these things?
Thanks for another fine question, Inno.
Lekker dag!