admin
Leroy Dzenga Youth Diaries
Recent protests against racism took a historical turn when relics of colonialism fell.
The fight which has gripped many global capitals and cities, was triggered by the murder of a black man in America, George Floyd who died tragically in police custody.
Interpretations have differed, but the prevailing point has been; black people are responding to years of systematic prejudice. Very few countries in the world can stand and declare themselves a safe haven for black people with a clear conscience.
This is why the struggle spread beyond American borders in no time, the resonance gave agency to spirited responses to Floyd’s death, which was in itself symbolic.
As the fight gained momentum, so did its nuance. There was a travel in history to pose questions on those who played a part in the formulation of the prevailing racial injustices.
The focus was on the global figureheads of racism. One such man who was caught up in the wave, was Cecil John Rhodes. His enduring legacy which includes being the architect of racist systems in Africa is beyond debate.
It is déjà vu to the time South Africa led the revolution and removed Cecil John Rhodes’ statue at the University of Cape Town in 2015.
The fight is back at Oxford University, a leading university in the United Kingdom. Voices have begun echoing for the removal of Rhodes’ statue from the institution.
At the heart of the Oxford #RhodesMustFall fight is Zimbabwean academic Professor Simukai Chigudu, who in his Guardian op-ed gave an explanation on why statues are more than physical endowments.
Prof Chigudu spoke on the need to confront the history and stories attached to these immortalised figures.
“Rhodes’ statue, then, is no mere physical artefact. It is imbued with a noxious history.
“Its presence at Oriel College reframes Rhodes’ conquest as munificence to the university and fails to recognise the exploitation of African labour from which his estate was built,” Chigudu wrote. He argued for the need to place these statues in spaces where their history will be told with no adulteration.
“It belongs in a museum, where it can be properly historicised. More importantly, in 2015 and now, the calls for the removal of such statues open up discussions about how we talk about the dynamics of race and racism, inclusion and exclusion, and being and belonging in Britain,” Chigudu added.
His poignant take fits the Zimbabwean story and the placement of some pieces of history. This time going beyond artefacts, Rhodes — the man, the coloniser — lies at Matopos.
Traditionalists have decried the presence of Rhodes’ remains at Njelele a shrine of great spiritual significance to pre-independence Dzimbahwe.
The complexity of the discourse around race, Rhodes and the progression of independent Zimbabwe makes these concerns legitimate.
Again, there are agitations for a conversation on Rhodes’ remains.
This time a number of young people are asking questions, both in speech and action. Even though these enquiries are not original — older generations have said the same over years — the fact that they are beginning to form part of the conversation is a sign of a possibility of a radicalised youth.
Anywhere across the world, black people need to remain aware of the fact that most systems they exist within were originally meant to exclude them.
Besides his remains, Rhodes has maintained presence in several spheres of Zimbabwean life. Our society carries weight left by our unfortunate interaction with colonialism.
There is still belief that white people were the ones with the winning formula in running economies. Case in point agriculture.
This was a result of sustained propaganda and narratives as old as colonialism itself. Older generations have struggled to successfully shake the shadow of being colonies off, understandably so.
After land reform was instituted, besides other factors, part of the low productivity in agriculture was framed as “black people being their ruinous selves.”
A number of black people, some well-educated sustain this argument in public places even to date.
Today, the youth are attempting to rewrite the story through increased activity in the agricultural sector, seeking to add value. The level of youthful activity in agriculture shows that Rhodes eventually is falling in some aspects.
Young people are unwittingly deconstructing the past narrative on blacks and productivity to the benefit of the country.
Right now young people involved in the agricultural value chain are thriving, with an example of Kuda and Nomaliso Musasiwa who run “Fresh in a Box” an exciting fresh produce company which has gained acclaim.
They are leading a bubbling market which is promising to provide employment for thousands if done right.
It is taking a generation that had little interaction with Rhodes’ rule, but felt the effects of his misgivings.
This is just an example of how the fight against racism sometimes may not need placards, but need black people to do good by themselves. Many other sectors bear the same stories, but they are seldom celebrated because they are compared to a past standard of colonialists.
There is a section of citizens stuck in a perpetual state of reminiscence, they find problems in every solution.
That in itself is a scar of racism.
Zimbabwe’s fight against racism has been largely unstructured at citizen level, but the new wave of consciousness should not be left to waste.
We should confront our painful history through thought and productivity.
leeroy
Online Reporter