In light of the racial tweets last week, what should South African whites do?
Here's a start: Don't denigrate black pain. Don't even try to pretend you understand the level of anger and pain that white racism and apartheid have done to blacks. If you have to listen, empathise and move on. Those who complain are not whining.
They are not just in pain, they want you to acknowledge the sheer horror of what happened here by speaking and acting with thoughtfulness and care.
Many whites ask: What do they want us to do? Actually, nothing. Not an apology, not a project of reparation. Just don't denigrate the pain, or try to make the "good old days" seem better than they were. They were worse than you can imagine.
For my children, for black people who have suffered in the past and continue to feel the brunt of apartheid's effects today, here's something to think about: the Penny Sparrows of the world are numerous. They are distracting. They are tiring. They are, crucially, irrelevant. We will never go back to what they hanker for: the days of apartheid. We have won.
This country faces real problems that a Penny Sparrow cannot even come close to comprehending. This is our real and urgent challenge.
We have 500,000 children passing matric this year into an economy with 35% unemployment. I want to talk, to fight and to do something about that. There is massive inequality. I want to help find a solution to that. There is poverty on a grand scale. There is corruption. There is no water in large swathes of the country.
Just a year ago a child fell into a pit latrine at school in Limpopo. Children are taught under trees. These are the real, urgent, problems that we face.
Racism? There is nothing I can do about Penny Sparrow. She was a racist throughout her life. Being blessed with a Nelson Mandela didn't change her. She will not change now. By all means she must be outed. Yet don't lose focus, particularly if you are a political leader. You are here to make poor people's lives materially better today than they were yesterday. Deal with the Sparrows but don't lose your focus.
There is an expression used by ANC activists - siyaqhuba. It means we go on, despite the noise. When I hear and meet the Sparrows of this world, all I say is this - "siyaqhuba", despite what they say. We are keeping on, building a better country every day, word by word and deed by deed, despite the failings of many of our leaders.
