Interracial Poster Sparks Controversy In South Africa (PHOTOS)

Although it's been almost two decades since apartheid ended, South Africans still feel the pangs of racial tension, and a poster depicting an interracial couple proves just how deep the issue goes.

The political ad created by the student wing of the Democratic Alliance party, shows a white man and a black woman embracing with the tagline "In OUR future, you wouldn't look twice." While the students might be right about the future, in the present the poster has incited a heated debate among the local media and politicians, the Washington Post reports.

While some have supported the ad for its progressive message of tolerance, others were outraged. For example, one commenter left a positive message under a photo of the poster on the group's Facebook page:

Love the DA! This campaign image is exactly what South Africa needs, now all the irrelevant racist "boers" can F off to their tiny irrelevant parties and the rest of us can stand together as one post-apartheid nation where race, religion or sexual preference doesn't mean anything, we're all human! Go DA! You have my vote. :-)

Other users, however, had much harsher things to say, condemning the poster for immorality and calling it an "abomination." According to the Washington Post, one commenter posted a photo of an all-white, blonde family, saying "Now that's how it should be!"

Still others were angry for the ad's depiction of white male dominance over black women, The Globe and Mail reports.

"The poster says, 'Join the DA to have an affair with a white person,'" provincial secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, Zet Luzipo, told the South African news service. "It entrenches the white supremacy that we fought against during the liberation struggle. We will not be excited with having an affair with a white person; we will not be enticed by that."

Despite the mixed reactions, the DA said they have accomplished their goal.

"With all the comments, good and bad," said the DA youth wing's federal chairperson, Mbali Ntuli. "We have achieved our goal of engaging South Africans in a frank debate about one of the most defining issues in our country today--tolerance."

Check out the full ad below.

Comments

[Yisroel12]

08:18 AM on 03/20/2012

All the negative commenters do is highlight the fact that there is indeed so much more work to do to end racism.

- Yisroel http://www.kosherunicorn.com

[mark luther king]

05:56 PM on 02/18/2012

It is not the image thats the problem its the pyschological background behind the image..., but until the wealth of south africa as a country is more fair distributed by between whites and blacks, blacks will always resents "whites".(i.e 90% of South african land owned by white minority).. and if u didnt know back in the days "white men" use to treat black women as their sexual slaves...that pain, shame and helplessness is not easily forgotten by those it affected "black men & black women" even though we have chosen to forgive...

[Matias G]

06:03 AM on 02/20/2012

" in the days "white men" use to treat black women as their sexual slaves...t­hat pain, shame and helplessne­ss is not easily forgotten .."

No one deny that, it's even well documented. But is it fair to doom this whole generation of young "whites" in SA what their ancestors did? Surely all South Africans have two main jobs:

1. Bake well the bread
2. Share fair the bread

Sleeping with whoever you like is not the main issue.

[ashken79]

10:36 AM on 02/21/2012

Can you prove whites own "90% of the south african land"?..Sounds like a made-up stat.
Would you be bothered if the pic were bm/ww?..I doubt it.

[India1148]

11:36 AM on 02/06/2012

The real irony in all this is that we all descended from a black ancestor in Africa centuries ago. The only reason any of us became any other shade, is due to the weather conditions and environment as humans began to travel away from Africa to the North, East and South. If you are far north where it's cold your nose became thinner to warm the air. Your eyes lightened to see better (allegedly) because there was more darkness. Genetics and evolution over time is what changed some of us. Other than that, any differences are imagined by those afraid of anyone different than themselves. And I do believe that God can fit into the evolutional design of humankind. God gave humans life. After that the rest was up to us.

[GretchenMann]

09:42 AM on 02/06/2012

What a beautiful photo!

[Aj Stone]

10:03 PM on 02/05/2012

In their future, they would all be a uniform brown color. Except for the ruling class of course, they will have beady eyes and a hook nosed beak. Of course those crying that the photo depicts the "White mans dominance over a black woman" wouldn't have any problem if it were a black man and a White woman.

[Lynn Alderman]

11:52 AM on 02/04/2012

I think this is beautiful :)

[bubbles46]

05:18 AM on 02/02/2012

Unfortunately, we still live in a society where black men and white women are somewhat accepted but the idea of black women with white men is still considered a taboo. Some people still can't get off their high horses and see people as people. Labeling everyone and putting people in boxes versus just associating them with their country is eventually going to destroy many pf us. Also, the stereotypes that the media has been allowed to show over the years regarding people of color still needs to be adjusted. I don't know where this, I am better than them attitude came from, but I can assure you that anyone who believes that they are better than others ESPECIALLY because of the lightness of their skin is suffering from mental illness. Instead of showing ads about interracial dating, they need to start hiring more psychiatrists to help these people figure out how to get mentally healthy. Sorry folks, if you are not God then you are in the same boat as the rest of us. Your body functions the same as any other human, regardless of the color of your skin. Stop the madness!!!

[Tmus82]

10:03 PM on 02/04/2012

Wow... That's dead on accurate. But I feel as though there has been progress made on this subject it's generational and it will take time but I believe some day there will be equality.

[Matias G]

06:14 AM on 02/20/2012

What people should read is this book: "The Invention Of The White Race" Vol1 and Vol2 by Theodore W. Allen. I recommend it. After that experience one will understand why so called "white race" was invented. But in the beginning of modern times (e.g 16th century and early 17th century) there wasn't "white race".

But now after some 300 years of transition we going again in right direction. May the race vanish forever so we can focus on class struggle.

[bubbles46]

11:01 AM on 02/20/2012

Thank you. I am going to look for it.

[TexasHurricane]

11:17 PM on 02/01/2012

Great ad. I love my brown wife. She says people stare at us sometimes in public but I don't ever notice. Interacially married in Texas.

[Cruel Justice Awaits]

07:10 PM on 02/01/2012

This photo should have been only one part of a whole campaign. To reach into the hearts and minds of even the staunchest bigot, there should be a series of situations depicted in an advertisin­g 'campaign' designed to 'get people thinking' about the future. Examples might include: Black male nurse taking vitals of elderly white woman, white female teacher assisting black student in a classroom, white male shaking hands with black male in a conference room and so on with clever captioning­. The problem as I see it is a response to something more than just subliminal being suggested in the photo above. Perhaps if we promote friendly interactio­ns in day to day life and get a good grip on that THEN we can openly portray intimacy without controvers­y and outrage. I believe this poster jumped the proverbial gun in the race to end racial tensions.

[ProgressiveCDN]

12:27 PM on 03/21/2012

I agree with everything you said up to the last two sentances.
I don't think it matters what order these interactions are shown, but SA would do well to realize all races can help and care for eachother...

[akhenaten18th]

04:45 PM on 02/01/2012

Mixing races only makes for mutts, mongrels and people who will never know their heritage.
It destroys traditions and cultures. I say tear it down.

[Tmus82]

10:04 PM on 02/04/2012

Oh I see you have 1 fan is it your mom?

[Hollywood053]

02:48 PM on 02/01/2012

I think it's a beautiful picture and a great tag line to go with it. The heart will never recognize color.

[Cruel Justice Awaits]

02:30 PM on 02/01/2012

I bet I can guess who is mod on this right now. I'll have to come back later.....

[legnAecaF]

02:21 PM on 02/01/2012

Live and let live. There are lots of interracial couples in South Africa and it is a common sight here nowadays. We've come along way and we all treat each other in a decent manner. I feel it is a personal choice who you have a relationship with. Yes, you still have some of the older folk that would look down at this as not acceptable but mostly we as the Rainbow Nation, have learned to live work and love together without wars. This add was not such a big issue here, actually.. the media is blowing it out of preportion. There are also lots of racial discrimination in other parts of the world, worse than South Africa but unfortunately we gave it a name. Apartheid. (which means seperate). Crime and corruption is high but it is a beautiful country with beautiful people. You should come visit.

[tteeghen]

03:31 PM on 02/01/2012

media always hypes this crap up.

[gamberdm]

04:34 PM on 02/01/2012

As a white mother of biracial children living in the USA, I have experience more discrimination and harrassment from blacks than I have whites. by far, since I have had my children. I was and remain shocked by it.

[Aj Stone]

10:05 PM on 02/05/2012

Its because they see you as being submissive to their black superiority dominance. Hope you will enjoy being treated as 2nd class chattel in the new "multicultural and diverse" United States.

[roadking01]

02:11 PM on 02/01/2012

republicans crying again about something that is absolutely none of their business. but calling it "white male dominance over black women" is going way too far. where i live when you see a black and white person together it's 99% of the time that the woman is white and usually not very attractive "not trying to be rude just stating my opinion of the ones i have seen" but of course beauty is in the eyes of the beholder and we all know about opinions....................obama 2012 !!!

[tonyaxsmithey]

02:21 PM on 02/01/2012

how do you tie republicans to this?? this is in South Africa. Are you not very smart? Your just an angry person lashing out and pointing fingers without any foundation, your a spoon fed idiot.

[sherstone212]

03:26 PM on 02/01/2012

Hello stupid... The comment you refer to was made by the WRITER using the argument from a BLACK South African. He was making the point that BOTH Black and White South Africans have a problem with this Ad. Some Blacks see it as a statement to promote White domination and superiority over Blacks; thus being the reason THEIR GROUP is offended by it. The White opposition was presented before that. This has NOTHING to do with Republicans or even Democrats here in the US...

[roadking01]

04:11 PM on 02/01/2012

but it sounds sooo much like repugs sher.........rolmfao.

[carinined]

02:10 PM on 02/01/2012

wow its amazing how views differ around the world. Im from florida and seeing a person in a interracial relationship isnt serious. Over there its a HUGE issue

[fallinofficer971]

06:36 PM on 02/01/2012

Carinined...I lived in Southern Maimi Florida myself...and I always considered it to be one big melting pot of interracial dating, everybody is interracially dating someone else...with all of the different cultural nationality living down there from the...Haitians, Dominicans, Colombian, Jamaicans, Chilian and Brizilian and the rest of them from South America that migrated to The U.S. that I failed to mention...What actually surprised me was when I would actually see a pure white on white or black on black relationship...Chucklin'..

[carinined]

09:08 PM on 02/01/2012

yea i agree, its not a big deal in florida. I see mixed children everywhere. I hope Africa can reach a point where its just two people in love and not an issue of race.

however articles like these make me super happy to be american lol