Michael MacDonald, professor of political science at Williams College in the United States, was here recently to launch his book Why Race Matters in South Africa. He talked to Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya
Why should South Africans listen to an American academic on the subject of race?
I was expecting that question. I’m not a South African, but I have worked, taught [at the University of the Western Cape] and done field research here. The other thing is that, as an outsider, I have a perspective that only an outsider can have. And I believe in the exchange of ideas.
So why does race still matter in South Africa?
Because it inspires blacks to trust the government and gives the government more legitimacy. It also matters because racial identities and communities are the outgrowth of political experience involving power and powerlessness. In the 20th century, South African racial identities were steeped in, and produced by, the experience of white supremacy.
The idea is not only that whites were citizens; the experience of being a citizen shaped what it meant to be white.The opposite side of the coin is that the exclusion of blacks from citizenship shaped the experience of being black.
What do you understand by ‘race’?
I don’t believe races are natural. Obviously people look different, but races are constructs of political and economic experience and power.
Can one conflate race and class in South Africa, where the number of rich and poor blacks are increasing?
The government and business agreed on the need for a black economic elite, because they understood that the overlap of racial identities and economic class ran the risk of polarising South Africa and that polarisation creates instability. Plus, it would have been unjust, as well as destabilising, for economic elites to remain wholly white. Democracy would ring hollow.
As a result, it developed a strategy for promoting a black elite to mediate between white economic elites and poor blacks. The idea was that the black economic elite would share economic interests with the established white elite and racial identity and opposition to racism with poor blacks. The black economic elite was created to mediate divisions and soften conflicts.
Does the black elite appreciate this role?
The government and the black elite see themselves as leaders of their people. I think they are sincere, by and large, but there is always a danger that they may equate their economic interests with those of the country. South Africa has to have black economic empowerment, but that is not enough; there have to be jobs, higher living standards, better healthcare and more widespread prosperity.
Where does all this leave whites?
Whites can live prosperous and free lives, but some feel marginalised in public affairs. Whites are still powerful in the economy and business. They are influential. They just don’t control state power any more.
Don’t those who say elections are merely a form of a racial census have a point, given that elections always follow a racial pattern?
They have a point, but that is what gives the African National Congress time. The problem is that if all elections become a racial census, then governments can be unaccountable. They don’t have to deliver.
And complacent?
I’m not saying the government is complacent. I am not accusing the government of bad faith, but the structure of the society is such that it might win elections in spite of a poor record of delivery. That is why race matters.
How sustainable is this situation?
More sustainable than people think, but it won’t go on indefinitely. Eventually South African society will have to reduce poverty and narrow economic inequalities, or conflict will intensify. The identification between black citizens and the government gives it more time [to address inequalities], but it does not solve the problem.
Do whites underestimate the effects of racism?
They underestimate the main effects, the inheritance of poverty and inequality. Whites feel that what they’ve achieved is the result of their efforts and ability, not their race. That is often true, but it doesn’t mean they didn’t get any help from the [apartheid] government.
Do blacks exaggerate the effects of racism?
I don’t think they exaggerate the legacy of racism, although they might have underestimated the effects of white supremacy before 1948. I think the legacy of racism is more important than continuing racism.
Given all the commissions set up to promote democracy, should there be a ‘race commission’?
Race is a sensitive subject in South Africa. South Africans often talk about race privately, among the people they know and are comfortable with. Otherwise, they are polite and considerate and try not to offend each other. It is a volatile issue.