Considering the events of the past few days, weeks and months - it is quite easy for me to feel negative - but I am not going to.
Nope. Not me, not today.
If you're wondering why, I will tell you. Because there are folks out there who want us to fail, they want our community to be complacent and silent and happy with the way things are. They love our apathy and false sense of security. They love it when we sit quietly by and accept every slap in the face and every kick in the butt they deliver. And because being negative will play into their hands, I am inclined to not play along.
There are folks out there now trying hard to undermine and destroy our rights, make radical changes to our constitution and to continue to enforce social bigotry and revel in institutionalized prejudice, but I'm not going to let that get me down, because their time is coming to an end. They know it too, which is why they are so paranoid and frantic about getting their reactionary movement established and formalized in South Africa.
Bigots ruled the roost in the Old South Africa, that Ancient Regime of the southern tip of this Darkest Africa - they shall not prevail in the New.
There are people in this country who are dedicated to preserving the civil and human rights of all people, whatever the cost. There are folks planning legal protests to demonstrate the outrage of the community on the matter of the appointment of a known hater to the post of Ambassador to Uganda, that reviled homophobe Jon Qwelane, whose anticipated presence as an official representing South Africa in a country such as Uganda, has been likened to pouring gasoline onto an already catastrophic situation. While I sincerely hope they will not be disappointed by the turnout for this protest, I won't let such things bring me down.
Even if nobody pitches up for that protest, we have the eyes and ears of the world firmly focused on South Africa, they watch, they see, they listen - and they talk as well. This is the 21st century, we have Stonewall 2.0. Somebody burps or farts - or makes a homophobic slur in Cape Town - and people in Serbia can read all about it almost immediately on a blog such as this one, or on Facebook or Twitter. So, if we screw up, it's live and on disk - for all the world to see.
The world is a much smaller place than it was a few years ago. People are closer, and governments are being relegated to the status of annoying little middle-men somewhere in the gray areas between them as they chat, email, SMS and tweet about the doings and screwings of their leaders, elected or otherwise. People all over are talking, planning and building bridges.
Freedom is at the heart of it, freedom and liberty, because freedom and liberty and equality are as vital as breath - and we only notice their absence when we are left gasping for breath when the colors of diversity and individual liberty are drained from the world around us.
The rainbow flag is my flag. It has many colors in it, and there are many colors in me. And these colors don't run.
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If you would like to know more about Christina Engela and her writing, please feel free to browse her website.
If you’d like to send Christina Engela a question about her life as a writer or transactivist, please send an email to christinaengela@gmail.com or use the Contact form.
All material copyright © Christina Engela, 2019.
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