I don’t want to be right!

i saw this picture and statement on Facebook today:

Count me out.

I need a break from South African politics and leadership dynamics. The poverty I have seen today visiting a rural area has me in a minor depression, I cant imagine WHEN the leaders will stop shielding and blaming each other and start serving this country.

[Zibu Masotobe Sibiya]

Sho, and it really hit me, especially the line: I don’t want to be right! I don’t want the other side to be wrong. I just want a working country.

For how many people is that the cry? The heartbeat of South Africa? The great Rainbow Nation image that never quite came to be…

No [Rainbow Nation] Country for Old Men

There seem to be two extremes when it comes to the idea of the Rainbow Nation that i think Desmond Tutu introduced when he was Archbishop of South Africa.

The one is that we are there, we have arrived, and we are in the Rainbow Nation, which, if you spend any time on social media or in various places around the country is a tough one to believe.

The other extreme is that the Rainbow Nation idea was a myth and we need to let it go and move on because it’s an obvious lie and because so much of the apartheid legacy was not dealt with [inequality of land, wealth, jobs] we will never be there.

i like to believe the Truth lies somewhere in the middle.

Search for the Rainbow Nation

i don’t think the image is the problem. The idea of a rainbow is different colours represented and together forming one united thing.

i just don’t think we are there yet, but i do believe it’s a healthy road map to the future we want to head to.

A lot of people suggest that Colourblindness is the answer – “I don’t see colour!” But i really don’t think that is a helpful ‘solution’ as we lose the richness of what each different person brings to the party and it is not true or helpful. We all see colour. Some people may treat others differently as a result of it, but we really should be seeking to celebrate the unique contributions of individuals and groups rather than trying to blend them all into one similar form. i wrote some more of my thoughts about the idea of colourblindness over here.

Step away from the screen

The term ‘Slacktivism’ is a cleverly creative one and refers to people who share stories and click on things and sign petitions online and get very loud about issues without actually doing anything practically about them. We don’t need more Slacktivists.

And there are so many people out there who are doing the things…

• Like this taxi driver who carries tampons and pads for women who don’t have.
• This non-profit educational organisation, BottomUp, who are working with learners from the greater Grassy Park area who are doing a number of things to engage learners, particularly with critical thinking and questioning of the systems and structures around them.
• The folks from Reclaim the City who are strategically and creatively discovering solutions for Affordable Housing in the City.
• Groups of friends from around the country are putting their heads and their money together to help meet needs of people they care about as members of Common Change groups.
• Groups like Good News South Africa and South Afri-CAN and Only Good Things: Good News & Stories from South Africa and the World are spaces where people are sharing stories of countless other South Africans who are achieving or doing great things.

i believe online spaces are important to debate and explain and teach and inspire and encourage and sometimes argue, but it cannot end there.

If each person in South Africa starts to ask these questions:

• What can I do with the time I have available?
• What can I do with the money I have available? Or who can I combine my little bit of money with to have greater potential to do good things?
• What can I do with the knowledge, skills and talents I have to impact others in need?
• How can I get creative about a problem or obstacle that exists in my road, in my community, in my local school or police station or old age home or hospital? 
• How can I use the networks I am part of to leverage the people I know into becoming more involved?
• What other questions should I be asking?

…and then act on them, slowly the Rainbow might start to appear.

We cannot hope to erase decades of violence, abuse, racism and trauma in just 25 years, especially when for the majority of that time a lot of us weren’t doing anything significant to help heal the past and present. But as we start finding a way we can get involved and as we invite our family and challenge our friends and communities to join us, then the work begins to gather momentum.

Who will model this for our leaders?

It’s not about winning arguments or fighting about who is right on social media. It is about taking opportunities to inspire and learn and see and develop empathy for. And it is about stepping away from our phones and computer screens and finding a way and ways to get involved and be a significant part of the change we want to see. Maybe by the man or woman in the street just getting out there and doing the work, we will find a way to inspire our leaders to join us and sort their own mess out.

[Zibu Masotobe Sibiya]