How best can we deter racist behaviour?

THIS WEEK the country was once again hit by another racial storm.

This time around ex-convict and Durban businessman, Kessie Nair, went on a racist rant, calling President Cyril Ramaphosa the k-word.

Nair, who served six years behind bars at the Westville Prison for fraud, went on to say Ramaphosa should be charged with failing the nation, and treason.

So bold was Nair in his determination to exhibit to the world his racist behaviour that he recorded a video and put it on Facebook.

In the last couple of months, we have experienced an explosion of videos and social media posts of racist bigots freely and arrogantly expressing their hatred for black people of this country, who constitute the majority of the population.

Nair has been considered mentally unstable ever since he left prison. But this is not an excuse for his shocking racist behaviour. Racism is not a mental disease, but hatred of fellow human beings simply on the colour of their skin.

Nair, as was the case with Vicki Momberg, should face jail time for his crimes if found guilty.

But the question that we have not confronted as the country with regards to racism is: What gives racists the temerity to act in the brazen manner they do?

The racists in our midst should be isolated, for they threaten our social cohesion, nation building and, most importantly, they threaten to collapse the reconciliation project which has been binding our nation.

As society we need to ensure that we close the space for any manifestation of racism in all facets of our lives. Government and the courts have to make sure that punishment for racial hatred is sufficient to deter people from engaging in such despicable acts.

Until there are serious consequences for racism, another Nair is set to emerge soon and, again, open the wounds of those who suffered centuries of racial hatred, and undermine our noble cause of nation building and unity.