South Africans show humanity, despite allegations of racism against their own

No matter that war is raging which may even go nuclear, you can rely on many Europeans – and in the West – to resort to their default position of racism when it comes to people of another colour.

It was not surprising to see that black South Africans, who have been studying and working in Ukraine, have been subjected to racist abuse and exploitation by the very Ukrainians who claim they are being abused by the invading Russian army.

The SA government and independent groups have confirmed allegations that black South Africans and others from the continent have been badly treated at Ukrainian borders while trying to flee the country.

Border guards have threatened to shoot these Africans, some of them have been assaulted and others exploited by rip-off charges for transport much higher than would be paid by locals.

Government officials and people in the surrounding countries have welcomed the white Ukrainian refugees with open arms, where only weeks earlier they had been trying to exclude people coming into their country from Africa and Syria.

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Western media coverage of events has, frequently, been tainted by the concept of racial superiority so inculcated by colonialism.

Commentators on a number of TV channels have expressed amazement that this is a war “between two civilised countries” while others, clearly, have no concept of refugees being white and blue-eyed.

The breadth of the coverage has also been much greater – even allowing for the massive background nuclear threat – than it has ever been for “Third World” conflicts.

It is heartening to hear, too, that South Africans – of all colours and in all parts of the world – are opening their homes to our people and Ukrainian refugees.

If this war reminds us that we are all just human, then some good might come of it.