Rhodes University's dean of students recently came under the attack of a racist remark posted on Facebook, by a former member of the Student Representative Council. Dean of students, Dr Vivian de Klerk, said in an open letter that she was the target of a very personal and public attack that tried to make her the scapegoat for one or two students' general dissatisfaction.
Rhodes University's dean of students recently came under the attack of a racist remark posted on Facebook, by a former member of the Student Representative Council. Dean of students, Dr Vivian de Klerk, said in an open letter that she was the target of a very personal and public attack that tried to make her the scapegoat for one or two students' general dissatisfaction. Former treasurer of the students' council, Pedro Mzileni, posted on Facebook that de Klerk was a problem and seeing as 70% of our students are black this year, her white ass can get off that seat. De Klerk told student newspaper italThe Oppidan Press/ital that she has never met the student in question, so she presumes that the attack was not aimed at her, but at her racial group. While I am personally hurt by his words, I am also saddened – indeed distressed – to see that one of our students, elected by his peers as a leader, could espouse such views after being at Rhodes for two years. Instead of laying a formal charge of hate speech and seeking to punish the student, de Klerk said that it would serve everyone better if they engaged in conversation to address the underlying problems. I don’t want vengeance. In fact, it would be regrettable to walk away from this unpleasant incident leaving these students feeling humiliated, angry, and possibly even more convinced that I am the ‘white bitch’ they claim I am, she said in her letter. She said she would like to turn this incident into a constructive engagement, in the hope that something good can come of it.
