The last few years have been unkind to humanity. Since the world went into shutdown after the breakout of the coronavirus, it is like we woke up to a new dawn of inhumanity. The animalistic characters in us are more prominent and our survival instincts are more hateful than primal.
The Russians and the Ukrainians are fighting, the Israelis are massacring innocent Palestinians, the Italians are throwing migrants back into the sea, people are killing each other over road rage and petty squabbles… It is as though life has lost value. We value our desires and needs more than the life of another.
I watch people describe horrors during their travels in countries that I once visited pre-Covid and made amazing memories. The hate towards tourists, Muslims, people of colour, Africans… basically anyone who looks different from the aggressor. The thing about hate that people forget is that once we get rid of everyone who does not look like us, the hate in our bodies does not just fade away. Instead, it multiplies and makes us turn against each other.
Evangelicals and some Christian denominations have no problem with Israel killing Muslims and Palestinians, but if you look deep enough, there are Israelis who have no love towards any Christian denomination. They just use the Bible to gain sympathy from foreign superpowers but treat Christians like enemies when they travel through Israel. They also hate African jews.
Very recently, as recently as this month, a wave of xenophobia has washed over South Africa. Operation Dulula is an anti-immigrant movement taking place in the country. Dudula, which means to force out or knock down in isiZulu, refers to the movement’s goal to expel migrants.
The operation has been lethal so far, as they kick out the sick and women in labour from seeking treatment in public hospitals. They also target and kick out tenants from homes they believe should be occupied by South Africans.
As a person who has lived in South Africa for many years, I couldn’t help but sigh. South Africans, especially black South Africans, are notorious for turning to xenophobic tendencies when things are not working out well for them. When the economy is tanking, they blame the immigrants. When there is a drought and there isn’t enough food, they blame the immigrants, when their kids are not getting good marks to go into universities, they blame the immigrants.
You may have noticed I used the collective noun of Black South Africans. This is not a noun that I conjured, it is literally the systemic categorisation of South Africans. As a student, I could not open an account, join the gym or use any kind of service without selecting my race from a list of race groups.
The most common racial groups included: Afrikaans, White South Africans, Coloureds, Black, Cape Malay and Other. As a frustrated Kenyan of mixed ancestry, I could never imagine fitting into a label.
Meanwhile, a crack has formed amongst the Nato leaders. They were all in support of Israel and Ukraine, but as other heads of state have started pulling away from the collective ideals, a divide has started to form.
Everywhere we look, from the news to simple social media or CCTV footage, there are multiple stories of prejudice, racism, intolerance and hate. It feels as though humanity has sunk to a new low. Any lower than this and we might as well call for Judgement Day.
