/ 30 June 2012

Africanist unity not new

In “Marginalised parties strive for unity” (June 22 to 28), commentator Steven Friedman was dismissive of the unity overtures being made between the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) and black consciousness movements Azapo and Sopa.

Pundits like Friedman think they have a monopoly on political knowledge and pretend to be nonpartisan, but I think some media outlets are encouraging a one-sided analysis because they want to curry favour with the ruling ANC because that is where their funding comes from.

Pan Africanist and black consciousness unity is not a new concept. In fact, it was in the course of trying to bring together the PAC, the black consciousness movement and the ANC that Steve Biko met his death.

Friedman and other fake analysts have been left behind by Jack Bloom, for one, who is trying to understand Biko and Robert Sobukwe.

I am a bred-in-the-bone pan- Africanist and I vote PAC. What party does Friedman vote for? Maybe the blighter votes for the Democratic Alliance, after all. – Sam Ditshego, Kagiso