Remarks by anc president cyril ramaphosa at the launch of the anti-racism initiative

1. REMARKS BY ANCPRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA ATTHE LAUNCH OF THE ALLIANCEANTI-RACISM
CAMPAIGN
5 JUNE 2020
ComradesandFriends,
Thisevening,we bowourheadsinmemoryof George Floyd,ablackman who waskilledbyawhite
police officerinthe US city of MinneapolisonMonday,25 May.
To hisfamilyandfriends,tohiscommunityandhiscompatriots,we extendourdeepestsympathies.
The killingof George Floydhasgalvanisedglobal outrage,notbecause the circumstancesof hisdeath
were exceptional,butbecausetheywere all toofamiliar.
Citiesacrossthe UnitedStateshave witnessedmassprotestsoverseveral daysandnights,some of
whichhave beenviolentlysuppressed.
The outpouringof grief andanger amongAmericansfromacrossthe country demonstratesashared
experience of pain,anguish,anger,victimisation,brutalityandinjustice.
For African-Americansinparticular,the murderof George Floydstandsoutasanotherlife tragicallylost
to a social orderthat still bearsthe scars of slavery,racial segregation,exclusionanddiscrimination.
But the deathof George Floydisnotjustan Americantragedy;itis a global tragedy.
It isa scene of intolerance andcrueltythatisreplayedinmanyways,atmanydifferenttimes,inmany
societiesacrossthe world.

2. The whole worldhasreactedwithangerto the killingbecause the eventsonthatdayin Minneapolisare
a symptomof a disease thatcontinuestodevourhumanity.
George Floyd,whowasa descendentof the peopleof thiscontinent,losthislife onAfricaDay,the day
on whichAfricacelebratesitsunityanditsindependence.
AfricaDay isthe momenteachyearwhenwe celebrate the triumphof the peopleof ourcontinentover
colonialismandslavery,the triumphof the Africanpeople overthe exploitationof ourresourcesandthe
occupationof our land.
AfricaDay iswhenwe rememberthe millionsof ourforebearswhowere soldacrossthe Atlanticto
endure intolerablecrueltyandmiserysothatothersmayamass huge wealth andprivilege.
It iswhenwe rememberthe millionsmore whowere enslaved,indenturedandexploitedonour
continentsothat colonial powersmaybe enrichedwithwhatdoesnotbelongtothem.
These atrocities –like manyothersthroughouthuman historywhere one personhasclaimeddominion
overanother– were enabledbythe false andhatefulideologyof racial superiority.
These atrocitieswere drivenbythe logicof colonialism, where whatbelongstoanotherpersonmaybe
expropriatedsimplybecause thatpersonbelongstoanother – supposedlyinferior–race.
If the aimof colonial conquestistheft,thenrace isitsjustification.
It was thissense of entitlementandsuperioritythatenabledEuropeansettlerstocastaside the
inalienable rightsof NativeAmericans,Aboriginal Australians,the Māori,the Inuitandthe many native
peoplesof Africa,Asiaandthe Middle East.

3. It was thissense of entitlementthatenabledthe creationandsustenance of apartheidhere inSouth
Africa.
As manycountriesof AfricaandAsiaachievedtheirindependence fromthe middle of the 20th century,
apartheidSouthAfricaremainedanoutpostof racial oppressionandeconomicexploitation.
Yet,despite the retreatof colonialismandimperialism, despite the endof apartheid,despite the great
progressthat hasbeenmade inforginga global communityof independentandequal states,race
remainsa definingfeature of manysocieties.
As we knowfromour ownexperience,racismhaseconomic,social,cultural,psychological andmany
otherdimensions.Andeachreinforcesthe other.
SouthAfricais a countrydefinedbyracial inequality.
Evenafter26 years of democracy,the country’swealthisconcentratedinthe handsof a few,
predominantlywhitepeople, while the poorandunemployedare overwhelminglyblack.
In almosteverymetricof humandevelopment –fromeducationtohealthcare,from nutritiontolife
expectancy –there isa huge difference betweenwhite andblackSouthAfricans.
The inequalityandpovertybecomesevenstarkerwhengenderisconsidered,withthe material
circumstancesof women – andAfricanwomeninparticular – beingevenmore severe.
Economicinequalityreinforcesotherformsof inequality.
It affectswhichcultural practices,whichlanguages,whichviewpointsandwhichinterestsare dominant
insociety.

4. It has a psychological effectthatfewwouldbe willingtoadmit,imbuingthose withwealthwithasense
of entitlement,andthose withoutwithasense of perpetual inferiority.
It was Steve Bikowhosaid:“Material wantisbad enoughbutcoupledwithspiritualpovertyitkills.”
He recognisedthatitwasthe purpose of apartheidnotonlyto dispossessblackpeople of theirland,
theirlivelihoods,andtheirlabour,butalsotodeprive themof theirdignity,confidence andself-worth.
While apartheidhasgone,itslegacyof inequalitycontinuestohave a similareffectonhow people
perceive themselvesandeachother.
Andso, developsacertainsense of inevitabilityaboutthe relativeprivilege andpovertyof blackand
white SouthAfricans,andof menandwomen.
Andit isthissense of ‘the natural orderof things’thatrequiresconstantandconsistentexposure,
critique andcondemnation.
It isthissense of ‘the natural orderof things’thatencourageswhite SouthAfricanstoracistoutbursts,
that enablesblackacademicstobe overlookedforpromotion,thatenableslabourtenantstobe evicted
fromtheirland,that encouragesmentoabuse theirwives,and thatmakesthe possible the killingof a
blackman by a white police officeronanAmericanstreet.
We needtoacknowledge thatracismandrelatedformsof intolerance are notonlytobe foundinthe
behaviourof individuals.
Theypermeate institutions,communitiesandsocieties.
Theyare manifestedinthe 21st centuryinmany ways.

5. Racismis one of the fundamental underpinningsof modernslavery,whichconfinesmanypeople to
forcedlabourand servitude.
It persistsinthe atrocitiescommittedagainstpeoplesacrossthe world –as witnessed,forexample,
duringthe Rwandangenocide,the ethniccleansinginBosniaand,more recently,the persecutionof the
RohingyainMyanmar.
It isthiscapacity – to denythe equal humanityof all people –thatliesat the heartof the continued
occupationbyIsrael of Palestinianland.
It istakenas an implicitjustificationforthe continueddenial tothe Palestinianpeople of theirrightto
self-determinationandliberty.
It isthistoxicmix – of chauvinisticeconomicinterestsandthe arrogance of racial,ethnicand national
superiority –that standsinthe way of the achievementof the independence of WesternSahara.
Racismsharesa fundamental characteristicwithotherformsof discrimination andintolerance,the
dehumanisationof the ‘other’.
The oppressionof womenisfoundedonthe completelyfabricatedbelief thatwomenconstitutealower
formof beingthanmen – a belief thatisreinforcedbyvariousreligious,cultural andsocial norms.
It isa belief thatmanifestsitself ineconomicmarginalisation,discrimination,dominationandviolence.
It isthe dehumanisationof othersthatcreatesfertile groundforxenophobia,forreligiousintolerance,
for Islamophobiaandanti-Semitism, andforethnicrivalryandviolence.
It makespossible the discriminationandevenviolence thatisdirectedatpeople onthe basisof their
sexual orientationorgenderidentity,thatexplainsthe marginalisationof people withalbinismorwho
are otherwise considered‘different’.

6. Intolerance isanenablerof brutality,oppression,neglectandindifference.
Thisis true of the experiencesof blackandindigenouscommunitiesinmanycountriesacrossthe world,
where racial profilingbylawenforcementauthoritiesanddisproportionate use of violence iscommon.
But I wouldargue,a similarprocessof dehumanisationisatworkwhere those inpositionsof power
violate the rightsof the vulnerable.
The unjustifieduse of violence bysecurityforcesagainstcivilians,includinginourowncountry,isone
such example.
The deathof CollinsKhozaandtenotherSouthAfricansreportedlyatthe handsof our securityforces
duringthe COVID-19lockdownissomethingthatIdeeplyregret.
These casesare now beinginvestigatedbythe IndependentPolice Investigative Directorate –IPID– and
the relevantstructureswithinthe military.
We will spare noeffortinensuringthatthose responsible are broughttojustice andface the full the
mightof the law.
While theydonothave the obviousracial dimensionsof the murderof George Floyd,theydorelyona
similarcontemptforthe intrinsichumanworthof the victim.
Such acts mustbe condemnedjustasvehementlyandmustcombatedwithequal intensity.
The same applies,indifferentwaysandoftentoa differentextent,tothose whosteal publicfunds
destinedforthe poor,tothose publicofficialswhoignore the plightof those theyare entrustedto

7. serve,andto those companiesthatare preparedtoendangerthe livesandhealthof theirworkersto
maximise profit.
As the worldacknowledgedatthe UN WorldConference againstRacisminDurbanin2001, the struggle
againstracism andrelatedintolerancesmustbe arelentlessone.
We mustdevelopasystematicprogramme totackle it,nationallyandona global level,basedonan
understandingthatall humanbeingsare createdequal.
The firststepmust alwaysbe to acknowledgethe existence of the challenge.
In doingso,we mustallowourselvestobe guidedbythose affectedbydiscrimination.
These communitiesare bestplacedtounderstandandexplainthe complexitiesof theirownchallenges
and whatmeasuresare requiredtoaddresstheirplight.
We mustensure thatthose whosufferintoleranceare givenavoice.
We mustmake allowance forthe intersectionalityof discrimination.
One individualcanbe discriminatedagainstbasedontheirrace,gender,ethnicityandamultiplicityof
factors.Each of those factorsmay require redress.
Governmentsandmultilateral bodieshave arange of instrumentsattheirdisposal totackle all formsof
racismand discrimination.
Programmesaimedataffirmingandstrengtheningthe rightsof vulnerablecommunitiesandpromoting
access to healthservices,educationandeconomicopportunitiesare critical tothe achievementof
greaterequality.

8. We mustcontinue to,collaborate onglobal strategiestostampoutracism and combathuman
trafficking,religiousintolerance andxenophobia.
Governmentsmustactagainstperpetratorsof all acts of racismand intolerance.
The biggerquestioniswhatwe can do as ordinarycitizenstocombatracismand relateddiscrimination.
Educationand awarenessprogrammesare amongthe biggestandmostvital toolsatour disposal.
We mustpromote respectfordiversity,respectandtolerance forothercultures,religionsandbeliefs.
We mustnot be afraidto call out racists,xenophobes,homophobes,andotherbigotsinour
communities.
We muststandfirmagainst the dailyactsof racismand micro-aggressionsdirectedatblackmen,
womenandchildreninthe workplace,inthe streets,atplacesof learningandacrosssociety.
As the people of SouthAfrica,we are guidedinthistaskbythe FreedomCharter,whichmakes the bold
assertionthatSouthAfricabelongstoall wholive init,blackand white.
Thisis the fundamental truththatunderpinsourstruggle foranon-racial society.
Non-racialismhasneverbeenatactic.
Like reconciliation,ithasneverbeenaboutplacatingthe erstwhile oppressor.

9. Non-racialism–andindeednon-sexism–are aboutbuildingafundamentallydifferentsociety,the
antithesisof ourapartheidandcolonial past.
Thisrequiresthatthe political,social,cultural,mental,andeconomicedifice of institutionalisedracismis
demolished,andthata justand equal societyisbuiltinitsplace.
As we forge aheadwiththistask,we rememberthatthe struggle forourfreedomwasnotour own,but
inthe cause of liberationof all whosufferundertyrannyandoppression.
As the UnitedStatesfindsitself inthismomentof crisis,we rememberthatAfrican-Americans–like
manyof theircompatriots – stoodby usin our darkesthour.
The civil rightsmovementinspiredourownstruggle,anditsleadersgalvanisedinternationalsupportfor
us.
We owe thema greatdebt,and we standin solidaritywiththemtoday,tomorrow andintothe future.
We believe thathumandignityisauniversal aspiration,andthatrespectforthe rightsand dignityof
everyhumanbeingisthe onlyguarantee of anynation’sprosperity.
As I conclude,Iturnagain to the wordsof Steve Biko,whosaid:
“We have setout on a questfortrue humanity,andsomewhere onthe distanthorizonwe cansee the
glitteringprize.Letusmarch forthwithcourage and determination,drawingstrengthfromourcommon
plightandour brotherhood[andoursisterhood].
In time we shall be ina positiontobestow uponSouthAfricathe greatestgiftpossible –a more human
face.”

10. StephenBantuBiko,the authorof these powerful wordsof hope anddetermination,diedinaprisoncell
on the 12th of September1977, a blackman murderedbywhite policemen.
His deathandthe deathsof so manyothershave not diminishedourquestfor atrue humanity.They
have not weakenedourresolve.
Instead,theyhave broughtforthfromwithinourcollectivebeingarelentlessdesire forjustice,for
peace,forunderstandingandforequality.
I thankyou.