How fulfilling is it to live a life in fear? To flee your home country, the people you love, the area you are familiar with, only to be confronted with the fear of living because of your identity? Many migrants in South Africa are all too familiar with this feeling and have become targets in acts of violence simply because they’re foreign nationals (NPR).
Why is there so much violence being centered upon the migrants? South Africa has been dealing with an underlying racial issue known as “Afrophobia.” An article written by The New Humanitarian, a non-profit news agency, defines it as “an intolerance towards other black Africans” (Humanitarian). Many migrants in South Africa are targeted for their appearances and identity (AllAfrica).
In order to escape the economic and political issues asylum seekers face in their home country, they flee to South Africa to seek stability. However, political figures in the South African Government have been outwardly blaming and using them as scapegoats for the faults of the country (Media). This has led to citizens holding the foreigners accountable for the flaws in the South African system. The former mayor of Johannesburg claims that “migrants are a menace to society” (NPR). Migrants have been blamed for the high unemployment rate in South Africa and are often wrongfully accused of stealing jobs. For example, there has been an increase in truck violence where many migrants are targets in truck attacks due to the belief that many foreigners have been “stealing” those jobs from citizens. However, many of the truck driving employers hire more migrants because they are more willing to work in comparison to South African nationals (AllAfrica). Despite important political figures encouraging violence and attacking refugees, the South African president has called for the people to welcome the migrants warmly (NPR). However, it is still evident that xenophobia still poses a threat to migrants.
Because many migrants feel that their safety is being threatened, they are protesting to be moved from South Africa. Many have been demanding to be moved to countries such as Canada, the US, Britain. However, it is not up to South Africa’s Government or the UNHCR (NPR). The protests have been causing more violence and disruption as well and are becoming out of hand (Media). Many migrants, including women and children, are being moved from a temporary sanctuary by the police because of the overflowing number of migrants that have been disrupting areas of tourism, such as a 19th-century church (Humanitarian). The unforgiving cycle of protests leading back to more violence is something that must be addressed.
Racism and prejudice can develop into deeper problems such as xenophobia which is what South Africa is facing at the moment. By addressing this, the world won’t have to face the poisoned branches of prejudice -- xenophobia. The current president is very aware that xenophobia is an issue in South Africa that has been interfering with its economy and culture. Due to violence that has been targeted towards migrant truck drivers, the South African economy has lost more than $64,979,064.00 USD (AllAfrica). The hate behind the wheels must be stopped in order for the progressive growth of the country. If the xenophobic violence is not dealt properly with by the South African government soon, not only will the economy suffer, but the people of the country will as well.
Works Cited: Allafrica.com. “South Africa: Trucking Violence Blamed On High Unemployment.” "AllAfrica.com", AllAfrica.com, 11 Mar. 2020, allafrica.com/stories/202003120281.html. Accessed 13 Mar. 2020.
Humanitarian, The New. “Briefing: South Africa's 'Afrophobia' Problem.” "The New Humanitarian", The New Humanitarian, 11 Mar. 2020, www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2020/03/11/south-africa-xenophobia-migrants-refugees-afrophobia. Accessed 11 Mar. 2020.
Media, AllAfrica Global. “Nigeria: South Africa - Amnesty International Condemns Xenophobic Attacks.” "Box", Pdf, 11 Mar. 2020, 2461084-6cfc4eeb-c1a4-4340-95ce-f9a08b1a1d74.pdf. Accessed 11 Mar. 2020.
Radio, Inc. (NPR), National Public. “Xenophobic Violence In South Africa.” Box, Pdf, 11 Mar. 2020, 2461084-e3dfbb37-bd05-423e-bbce-d39c7750bfe9.pdf. Accessed 11 Mar. 2020.
Timeslive. “'There's No Xenophobia Here'.” "TimesLIVE", TimesLIVE, 4 Mar. 2020, www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2020-03-04-watch-theres-no-xenophobia-here-refugee-speaks-out-against-chance-taking-members-of-cape-town-group/. Accessed 13 Mar. 2020.
Really liked reading your article :)) My favorite part was your explanation of the contradictories South Africa is showing towards the migrants, in terms of complaining they are taking too many of their jobs, but also giving them jobs that their citizens would not want to have to work. This shows that there really are two sides to everything, that there's almost always something good to come of something you may perceive as negative. This also tells a little about the South African citizens and I thought it was an important part of the piece. My main take away from your article is that people are always going to find a problem in each other, find something to hate about others, and how important it is to love and be welcoming to others, because it's clear that the migrants are in a very difficult position. I wonder, If the migrants are able to go elsewhere, such as the U.S. or Canada as mentioned, would they find more happiness and a better life for themselves?
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your article. I found it interesting that this issue existed because I did not hear about it prior to your article. I am not surprised that South Africa still struggles with social equality, given that it just gained its freedom a few decades ago. My favorite part was the conclusion because it drew acute attention to the matter while summarizing the entire piece using impactful language. I also like how you mentioned logical reasons like the economy as well as emotionally touching reasons like racism because it created a complete perspective. How did you find this topic?
ReplyDeleteI really liked your article! My favorite part was your introduction and conclusion paragraphs because I thought that you did a really good job with your hook and introducing your ideas, and the conclusion tied your whole article together and was well written. My main takeaway from reading this is that migrants are in a difficult position and struggle with social equality and racism in South Africa. I thought this was a very interesting topic, and I was wondering, what are other countries doing to help solve this issue?
ReplyDeleteNice job, this was an intriguing piece. I think this topic warrants attention as it is an issue that many around the world can relate to, as many individuals know or are immigrants searching for a better life. My favorite part of your article was the structure and organization of it as the ways you included emotional and more political and economic aspects of this issue were quite effective. My main take-away is the venality of South Africa's government, which wishes for migrants to do laboring jobs and dirty work but looks away when citizens treat them poorly. Are there any similarities between other countries' and South Africa's treatments of migrants, such as some select European nations?
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