We are all human!

Do you remember a show on SABC 1 called Precious Africa, where the presenter Precious Kofi (now Schamel) would go travelling around Africa and highlight the beauty in all our African countries?

Well Precious is now married and living in the States and has two gorgeous children.

Precious recently took to Instagram and revealed that although race isn’t a big issue in her family, they are not immune to discriminative comments made about them.

“I’m not going to pretend like colour isn’t a thing, as even the most well-meaning human loving individuals in our lives aren’t able to truly see passed the colour of my skin” Precious said.

It is not secret that I am in a mixed race relationship and we have a beautiful 13 month old daughter together and we are also not immune to all the prejudices that get thrown our way. Now before the “Zaba’s always talking about race” police come for me, please understand that race is something we cannot shy away from. 

More often than not, our race goes hand in hand cultures, which when you’re in a mixed race relationship, integrating cultures can be difficult. Before now, Bevan had only heard of processes such as amalobolo nenhlawulo, but now he is experiencing them first hand.

We’ve had all types of commentary thrown our way regarding our union, and although the majority is not bad, the bad tends to stick with you. Once, a lady said to Bevan, in Afrikaans “You should have stuck with your own kind” to which Bevan swiftly replied to her in English “If you had stuck with your own, you’d be married to an idiot” (YAAAAAS BAE!!)

The comments that hurt me the most come from black women. The majority of black women sing my praises and tell me how lucky I am to have a non-black man and how my child will have good hair and light skin. Are we as black people filled with so much self-hate towards our own that we see going out of the race as an achievement? What on earth is good hair? And what is wrong with having dark skin? I fell in love with a man, not because of his race, but because of his heart.

Recently, when I was at the airport with my daughter, she made friends with two little (white) boys which goes to show that children will not see race or have prejudice against another race unless you teach your children to do so. 

What I will teach my daughter, is that a man is man, and a woman is a woman. Life throws us curveballs every single day that are for more complex than complexion and staying with your own. You will never see the full beauty of this world if you don’t embrace our differences and love with no boundaries.