The price of freedom is vigilance

Lto all. AST Sunday, celebrity Somizi Mhlongo stormed out of a Grace Bible Church ser- vice after a guest pastor made homophobic remarks in his sermon. The only question is why more congregants didn’t leave. As our columnist argues on the opposite page, the truth is too many are selective in morality and outrage. Ours is a young country built on the premise of tolerance and acceptance of diversity. Our constitution enshrines exactly this, under- standing not just that the wounds inflicted by our divisive past must heal, but also that nurturing di- versity is a strength. We should have stood as one to condemn what occurred in that church service last Sunday – in- cluding the sexist commentary – just as we should all have expressed abhorrence at the recent van- dalism of mosques in our city. We should also all see through the facile excuses tendered this week in Sandton, Johannesburg, aimed at blocking the construction of a mosque there. We need to guard against all prejudice, especial- ly our own. An injury to one is ultimately an injury None of us should need any reminding of this. Rwanda lost 1 million people in 100 days at the very time we were celebrating our liberation. Pastor Martin Niemöller’s injunction during the dark days of Nazi Germany still rings true. In his words: “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me. But there was no one left to speak for me.” The price of our freedom is eternal vigilance against any form of prejudice be it xenophobia, homophobia, Islamophobia or anti-Semitism.