Open Writing

A court case is currently underway in our country which deals with the singing of a freedom song. The song, entitled Kill the Boer, is said to be a form of hate speech, inciting violence against white farmers. A farmers' association is bringing charges against the ruling-party's youth leader who claims that this and other freedom songs comprise the peoples' heritage and should be allowed as a means of remembering the struggles of the past.

Needless to say, the debate is one that has stirred the national conscience. Radio talk shows are abuzz with opinions from both sides of the political divide. I find myself taking the liberal view that freedom of speech should be allowed, and that audiences should judge for themselves whether a call to action is relevant or not. Yet the lyrics of the song in question are so overtly hostile that it is easy to understand why a community that has suffered hundreds of murders in recent years should feel victimized.

I pondered this dilemma as I listened to the arguments raised by callers. Both sides had valid points. What was I to do about coming to a personal conclusion on the matter?

I thought of the Holocaust and all the horrors that went on under Hitler's regime. If Nazi songs were sung at contemporary political rallies, would they be tolerated? Perhaps. But was it right? Was it fair? Was running rough-shod over peoples' sensibilities something that could be justified in a civil society?

I hesitated, wary of jumping to the defense of the victims on account of my own circumstances. The fact that I am blind automatically predisposed me to side with the underdog and I didn't want to make a snap judgment. So I considered that the song, Kill the Boer had been written as a call to avenge oppressive labour practices during the apartheid era. According to the ruling party's Youth League, it had played a vital role in the struggle for democracy, which had been successfully achieved in 1994.

Nevertheless,, the question still remained, was it worth singing at political rallies today, since South Africa has changed its policies and has one of the world's most progressive constitutions? To my mind, the answer lies in the way we see ourselves. Thinking back to my childhood, I recall songs that we sang in the playground of our whites-only school. One group would gang up against another and we would take delight in verbally lambasting our enemies. But those songs belonged to then and are never sung nowadays. Not because they are bad, but simply because we have outgrown them. Who wants to remember, while sharing an enjoyable afternoon with friends, that one used to jeer at people like them, or wish them dead, or dream up the worst possible fates for them to suffer?

Because this is the crux of the matter. We are supposed to be a transformed society which respects the rights of individuals and values cultural diversity. If, at some time in our past, we exaggerated our hatred of those who enjoyed a better quality of life than ourselves, surely we've learnt to temper our attitudes? History has moved on and so have we.

The past is gone for good. Why bring it up again? We've accumulated fresh experiences which are completely different from what we experienced in our history. We have to acknowledge this, or else acknowledge that we've not been paying attention.

Indeed, we should be writing new songs that celebrate freedom. Again, not because the new songs would be better, but because music binds people together and songs are a way of affirming the progress we have made.