{"id":1627,"date":"2016-10-14T16:01:34","date_gmt":"2016-10-14T14:01:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/studentnewsgrid.com\/?p=1627"},"modified":"2016-10-14T16:01:34","modified_gmt":"2016-10-14T14:01:34","slug":"feesmustfall-still-fees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/studentnews.africa\/sng\/2016\/10\/14\/feesmustfall-still-fees\/","title":{"rendered":"#FeesMustFall: Is it still about the fees?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2015 #FeesMustFall movement had the country wrapped in its cloak of idealism with students protesting together despite racial and cultural differences. It was truly the picturesque view of the democratic rainbow nation. Social media platforms were ablaze with visuals showcasing the theme of racial unity in the face of adversity. Black and white students were seen holding hands, passionately singing and dancing together. They triumphantly embraced one another as their united cry for a 0% fee increment was positively answered by government. However, the atmosphere permeating through the 2016 #FeesMustFall protests is vastly different from its predecessor. As the protests have progressed around the country, they have increasingly revealed a conflict of interest between black and white students at various institutions. This conflict of interest has been attributed to the concept of white privilege.\u00a0This concept has been increasingly referenced to by #FeesMustFall activists as of late.
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\nUCT
\n<\/strong>In a video captured by 3rd Degree reporters, a black female student at the University of Cape Town (UCT) identifies white privilege as that which governs the culture of the institution. \u201cWe have eight students who have been criminalized, firstly because they are black and secondly because they are facing up to white power, white supremacy and white arrogance at UCT\u201d, stated the speaker amid the cheers of students present. The speaker further elaborated on the concept of white privilege by saying that being a person of colour in South Africa can be likened to being in a perpetual state of oppression. The video draws to a close as the speaker directly addresses white students by saying \u201cYou are going to use you\u2019re privilege to mobilize and stand in solidarity with us. This is not open for discussion. I\u2019m instructing you.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the Fees Must Fall protests have continued to disrupt academic activities across the country, we have seen the rise of movements asking for universities to be opened. In late September #ReOpenUCT started up its own Twitter page. The movement is \u201ctrying to keep UCT open in spite of disruptions. We are not against more affordable fees!\u201d While #ReOpenUCT is not against the principle behind the Fees Must Fall movement; the creation of such a movement has highlighted racial divisions amongst students. SNG spoke to Caira Blignaut, third year student at UCT, who said that \u201cthere was such a clear racial divide. Most of the students and lecturers supporting #OpenUct were white people and most of the people who were supporting the #FeesMustFall movement were people of colour. On the video footage you can clearly see this.\u201d<\/p>\n

UCT\u2019s Varsity Newspaper editor-in-chief Aisha Kareem Abdool, cautioned against the notion of examining the protest from a purely racial black versus white perspective. Abdool commented that he \u201cwouldn\u2019t say that it is only between black and white students because there are colored students, Asian students, Indian students and black international students so it really has more to do with people\u2019s backgrounds, where they are coming from and their own personal feelings towards the situation.\u201d Abdool also mentioned that the racial split in support for the #FeesMustFall protest arises from white students\u2019 inability to understand where black students are coming from.<\/p>\n

According to Abdool \u201clast year there was a lot of support for the protest regardless of racial groups, however this year I think that the longer the protest has dragged on, the more it tends to become racialized. The more the white \u2018supporters\u2019 start to miss out on classes, or feel excluded in the space they tend to withdraw their support.\u201d Abdool further explained that generally white students at UCT feel that the rationale behind the protest is being lost because in comparison to the previous year\u2019s #FMF movement, the main objective of the 2016 #FMF protest is harder to ascertain. He concluded by saying that \u201cthere are quite a few different causes that all of the protestors are putting under one banner.\u201d<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Akr2-Bq8N8s<\/p>\n

Wits
\n<\/strong>At the University of Witwaterstrand (Wits), a Whatsapp voice note went viral after the female speaker in the voice note warned that the #FeesMustFall protestors had said that \u201cin order to get Habib\u2019s attention, at least one white student must die, whether male or female.\u201d The speaker in the voice note explained that the motivation behind this statement was to express displeasure at the perceived manner in which Vice-Chancellor Adam Habib was handling the protests. The speaker elaborates by saying that the protestors feel that Habib is arrogant and this arrogance is further aggravating them.<\/p>\n

A video recorded by TimesLive<\/em> at the #KeepWitsOpen protest clearly revealed the dissent brewing between students caused by the concept of white privilege. In the video, a black male student can be seen angrily yelling to those around him that the police were not intimidating the #KeepWitsOpen protestors because they are mainly comprised of white students. The second frame of the clip shows a white female student, who was part of the #KeepWitsOpen protestors, criticizing a black male student from the #FeesMustFall protestors about not attending discussions and negotiations to consolidate a joint way forward.The black male student responds d by saying , \u201cgo back to the Netherlands, they need you there.\u201d As the clip progresses, we see a white male student in a wide brim hat attempt to intimidate the #KeepWitsOpen protestors by blocking their paths and ripping their placards. \u201cThis university isn\u2019t just for white people, it\u2019s for black people, it\u2019s for South Africa and here you are just trying to be privileged entitled f****\u201d, he shouts.<\/p>\n

The clip ends with a rousing speech from student activist Vuyani Pambo addressing the #FeesMustFall protestors after the #KeepWitsOpen protestors had retreated. Pambo spoke of the perceived white arrogance and supremacy that is at the core of the #KeepWitsOpen movement. \u201cWhite people must not think we are stupid. We can read the innuendo\u2019s, the underplay in their words\u201d, said Pambo. He then touched on the history of Wits and stated that the mines on which the university was built were intended solely for the benefit of white people. Pambo went on to say that \u201cthe grandchildren of those that built this university are saying that they are taking back Wits. We have one conclusion from that, and that is that they are taking Wits back to white hands and our protest has been saying that we must extend the space [institution] for people who look like me and you.\u201d<\/p>\n