Ugliness of Clifton Beach debate is worrying

THE UNTIMELY and regrettable method of clearing beach-goers from Clifton Beach in Cape Town by a private security company and the comments, made by some individuals regarding the distressing incident, have added to the long list of discriminatory and bigotry statements South Africans heard over the past year.

The Clifton Beach fiasco has triggered statements about racism, exclusion, class, police failure and political agendas.

Many are looking back to apartheid-era legislation which prohibited non-whites from frequenting beaches set aside for whites.

Vulgar phrases such as “this is not your land” or “go back to your country” are worrying.

Such narrow-minded language is disturbing because it does not aid nation-building and it slows down our ability to heal from our apartheid past.

Social ills such as classism, racism, xenophobia, discrimination, gender-based violence and family disintegration, are some of the pressing social ills keeping us away from achieving a dignified life for all who live in South Africa.

Therefore, I once again reiterate that the teaching of social justice topics at institutions of learning, such as schools, is important to deal with these social ills.

We need to work on building social cohesion and co-existence.

MOHAMED SAEED | Pietermaritzburg