The great Cecil John Rhodes statue debate (great debate, not Rhodes) has sparked many different off-shoot debates and opinions.
- 'it must go, it honours an evil colonialist'
- 'it's just a piece of stone, let it be'
- 'it's part of history, accept it as such'
- 'it's an attempt to destroy everything that's white'
- 'take it down, but put it in a museum'
- 'let it be, you're not saying no to his bursaries, are you?'
All of these include many subtexts and any South African who hasn't been living in isolation for the past two decades will be able to guess the profile of the individual or group that fits each of the above points of view with great accuracy.
And while we fight about the future of his statue on the steps of UCT, in the afterlife the imperialist politician's ego must be inflated no end. (Where exactly he's spending eternity depends on which of the above viewpoints you support.) More than a century after Rhodes's death in 1902, anti-statueists (new word) are playing right into the colonialist's hands by keeping his name, deeds and history alive.
Their call to destroy/remove the statue has caused a spike in Google searches for info on Rhodes and his name and 'legacy' are being discussed across all media - Facebook, Twitter, TV and radio. You name it, the debate rages on. Ironically, the anti-Rhodes protest has done more to keep the man alive for all posterity than any number of statues could ever have done.
On Tuesday 24 March a plane with 150 people on board crashed into the French Alps. We have since heard that the suicidal co-pilot crashed the plane on purpose. A couple of weeks before this unspeakably selfish mass murder/suicide he told his girlfriend: "One day I'm going to do something that will change the whole system, and everyone will know my name and remember."
I shall contribute my small part and not mention his name.
BY ILSE SCHOONRAAD, GEORGE HERALD EDITOR
