DA leader John Steenhuisen has defended his behaviour during a panel discussion on Gareth Cliff’s Burning Platform show following a racist incident.
During a discussion with Steenhuisen and community activist, Mudzuli Rakhivhane on 22 October 2021, Cliff made an insinuation that racism was not as big a problem as poor service delivery. He also went on to say that nobody cared about Rakhivhane’s lived experience of racism as a black person in South Africa.
Following public outrage, chicken brand Nando’s announced the termination of its five-year sponsorship of Burning Platform the very next day.
However, Steenhuisen also came under fire with people on social media stating that his behaviour during the show, demonstrated that he agreed with Cliff’s sentiments.
During a subsequent interview with Nickolas Bauer, Steenhuisen refuted that he smirked during the exchange between Cliff and Rakhivhane.
“Are we policing people’s facial expressions in South Africa? I find it very odd this whole situation. It’s like blaming a passenger in a taxi because the driver of the taxi jumped a stop street and had an accident with someone. I was a guest on the show, I was invited to talk about service delivery, and if you watch the full interview, that’s exactly what I did. What Gareth did with another guest is his business. When you start policing people’s facial expressions, I think we are starting to hit a new low in South Africa,” said Steenhuisen.
When asked how he felt about what Cliff had said, Steenhuisen answered: “I think we have reached a new low in SA where we are blaming another panelist for an interaction between two completely separate individuals. I don’t negate anybody’s lived experiences. The lived experience of all South Africans has to be our concern. And if you don’t accept people’s lived experiences, well, then you’re in the wrong game if you’re in politics.”
Sources: MSN, News365
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When they try to talk over you and tell you that your experiences as a black woman in South Africa do not matter🤦🏽♀️. Racism is structural and even operates at a municipal level. The literal definition of black lives don’t matter. 💀 pic.twitter.com/i2KcVzjcCd
— Mudzuli Rakhivhane (@mudzy_r) October 22, 2021
