One of the many lessons we need to take from the response to The Spear painting is that, as a nation of diverse communities, we still do not understand each other. Again and again, we are surprised by how different people behave in the face of innovation or controversy, such as a work of art.
Many South Africans saw the painting as nothing more than a provocative criticism of power as part of a proud artistic tradition. It challenged certain conventions of polite society but it also located itself in a recognisable tradition of art. It was something most people – who believe in the rights-based culture that celebrates freedom of expression – could understand.
Yet for many, the painting represented an almost unimaginable pornographic humiliation of a black leader and elder. If it was part of any tradition, it was seen as of a racist one that denigrated black people – and the black man in particular. It didn’t call to mind the protest art of the Struggle, but an older, nastier heritage of white contempt. It was an insult to their dignity.
The debates that followed made a key social fact abundantly clear: as a nation, we don’t really understand each other. We might think we do, or we may presume that it doesn’t matter if we don’t, but it regularly leads to situations where, when we engage with each other in important conversations, we end up talking past each other in mutual incomprehension. Because we don’t grasp the historical or cultural foundations upon which others speak, we try to communicate with only our own perspective in mind, never that of the neighbour we’re trying to interact with.
Indeed, it sometimes seems that we desire to remain a nation perpetually naive and unwittingly indifferent about each other’s thoughts and motivations.
I thus worry that we lack the will and interest to learn about each other in a manner that will foster reconciliation, the main quality necessary for lasting stability, prosperity and national unity.
It is tempting to think that reconciliation is something that is produced through a cathartic and emotional explosive sharing of feelings, as happened most visibly during the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings. At an individual level, between identifiable victims and perpetrators, this can be a crucial dimension to the process.
But from a big-picture perspective, where entire groups are considered “victims” or “perpetrators” or “beneficiaries”, then momentary outpourings of emotion by individuals are insufficient for securing the broader racial reconciliation that we desire.
We need something more durable. We need something more resilient. We need knowledge of each other. We need insight into one another’s circumstance. We need understanding. We need empathy. We need to be able to see the world through each other’s eyes. It will not be easy. It will take time. It requires real work. It requires commitment and real investment. We need to take an interest in the histories, languages, experiences and cultures of the people around us.
Sadly, we cannot take the act of communication for granted. We do not share a common world of knowledge and meaning that we can tap into together. We must rather learn about others’ perspectives if we want to communicate effectively.
That’s the price demanded in a diverse, low-trust society that carries a massive historical burden.
The question is: do we care enough about other groups in SA to bother to learn about their world views? Do we care enough to ask others about themselves? Essentially, do we give a damn about the future of our country?
Paradoxically, diversity is our greatest asset and our greatest threat. It is an asset if we trust, understand and empathise with each other. But in our context of pervasive distrust, our diversity often serves as the fault-line for division.
The Spear controversy reminds us again just how much work must be done if we are to reconcile with each other and build a prosperous future together.
To achieve reconciliation’s objectives, why not ask your neighbour to tell their stories so that everyone can begin to give a damn about one another’s welfare.
l Dr James is the DA’s federal chairman