Centre of storm: Chidimma Adetshina. Picture: X
Is the Miss SA pageant ever going to exist again without controversy?
It seems that every year the skeletons of one of the beauties come tumbling out of the closet, miring the pageant in scandal.
Previously we have mostly had old displays of prejudice and ugly behaviour being dug up. Previous scandals that scuppered the hopes of contestants included accusations of bullying and racist behaviour.
This time, the scandal took a new turn that sparked a national conversation around nationality, xenophobia, illegal immigration and what it means to be South African.
Chidimma Adetshina is the name of the 23-year-old at the centre of the storm.
Last week she was forced to withdraw from the competition because it turns out her mother may have attained her citizenship fraudulently.
Plus, according to her statement, her and her family’s safety was being threatened by her continued participation, which is unbelievably concerning.
It all came about because although she was raised in SA, her name doesn’t resonate as local. Also, there was that video of her celebrating with family members, dressed in traditional Nigerian clothes.
This is where our new Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie stepped into the fray, boldly declaring that a foreigner cannot be allowed to represent South Africa as an ambassador.
It’s a statement that makes perfect sense, on the face of it. But it conveniently ignores the fact that Chidimma is not a foreigner by any stretch of the imagination.
She was born here, was raised here, schooled here and dreamed her dreams here.
She is as South African as any other first-generation immigrant with a heritage that’s rooted in another country.
In Chidimma’s case, those roots stretch to Nigeria on her father’s side and Mozambique on her mother’s side.
The possibility that her mother may have stolen someone else’s identity to secure citizenship has nothing to do with her as a person.
Yes, to a degree our history informs who we are, but not more so than our socialisation, and there’s no doubt that she was socialised here.
The whole thing stinks of the world’s ongoing xenophobic tendencies.
It’s a dangerous thing that is almost always fuelled by politicians, who should be using it as a teaching opportunity about our humanity and need to embrace our Africanness.
Chidimma is unfairly being punished for the sins of her parents as an example to others.
Oh and by the way, congratulations to our new Miss SA, Mia Le Roux, who was crowned by her predecessor Natasha Joubert.
And because we are more enamoured by European than African heritage, their distinctly French surnames doesn’t raise any eyebrows at all.
dailyvoice@iunl.co.za
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