"Rode, Linda - I, A Living Arrow" - читать интересную книгу автора (Rode Linda)

mony in the reborn land that is South Africa ... Frankly, I think it's a
load of codswallop.

I can't suddenly change the way I view a person of a different colour
just because we are supposed to accept the views and beliefs of that per-
son. How can we possibly hope to change decades of racial tension and
social prejudice by pretending to change the way we feel toward each
other? All my life I have been surrounded by my own kind. Enclosed in
that cocoon, I never had to associate with "Whiteys" or "Blacks".

But suddenly, people of colour have a say. We are allowed into places
previously reserved for Whites, we have democratic votes, we can go to
mixed schools, we can walk around without concern for police harass-
ment. Because Blacks now have gained more power and an equal say,
the Whites hope to be forgiven for the atrocities of their ancestors.
Many of us have indeed managed to forgive and actually look to the fu-
ture with hope. I am not one of these. For me, a member of the Indian
minority, nothing has changed.

My people arrived in this country as indentured labourers, as slaves.
It took hard work and an endless struggle for them to break out of that
mould. But still we have nothing to show for our efforts. Apartheid saw
to it that Whites were allowed to vote and had rights which Blacks could
only dream of. Discriminatory action ensured that Whites got jobs, that
Whites lived comfortably while people of colour toiled in a fruitless ex-
istence. In these times Indian people were not white enough to gain any
special rights or privileges. We were treated in the same way as Blacks.

In 1990, all that started changing - Nelson Mandela was released
from prison. Our first democratic election took place in 1994. Blacks
and Whites now had equal rights and the era of unity had begun.

Then, though no one acknowledged it, everyone knew it was hap-
pening: we were reverting back to the same old system. Only, this time
in the opposite way. Black people are now given the jobs. Black people
now have status. And once again, the Indian minority is left in the cold.
This time we are not black enough. How can I be expected to live con-
tentedly in a country where the colour of my skin is still a hindrance in
spite of the promise of equality for all?

I respect the views of the people who look into the future with hope
and pride. One has to admire their optimism. But I find it increasingly
difficult to lose my cynical view on life in South Africa as I daily see big-
oted practices which refute everything this country is supposed to rep-
resent. I long for the day when we can drop the charade and can truly
say that everyone in South Africa is treated equally. Then I will be able
to say that I am genuinely proud to be a South African.

But until that day comes, I will wallow in my cynicism, waiting.