Pistorious: Black South Africa stands accused too

The Oscar Pistorious murder trial of Reeva Steenkamp is probably the biggest story around the world today. London’s 2012 Olympic games catapulted Pistorious, known as the Blade Runner, to worldwide fame. Perhaps of all the Olympians who participated at the London Games at a global level, Pistorious probably comes second only behind Usain Bolt.

Which is why there is a such a massive interest as this tragic story unfolds. One fact remains however, that a young woman with her whole life to look forward to was shot dead by her boyfriend.

Sadly, though, it is not just Oscar Pistorious who has been put into the dock under the worldwide scrutiny. From the moment the news story broke, the media agencies were fed the line that this tragedy would not have happened had it not been for the justified paranoia that white South Africans have over the fear that they will confront Black criminals. Indeed, the early rumours suggested that Steenkamp-his girlfriend- had attempted to surprise him on Valentine's morning who was then mistaken for a burglar.

Hours after those first rumours about mistaken identity, the police authorities quickly, and unusually, sought to dispel this line of thinking, but today as the world listened to the Pistorious defense, his team argued that he thought his girlfriend was in bed and a burglar, not his girlfriend was locked in the bathroom.

Of course it would be wrong to speculate about what occurred in the gated house of Pistorious, as it would it be wrong to completely ignore the high levels of crime in many big cities in South Africa. What cannot be ignored though is how quick some people will use the ‘Black stereotype’ criminal to either hide their own criminal activities, deflect attention aware from them or just act in a racially vindictive way.

An example of this occurred in the USA when a South Carolina white woman named Susan Smith claimed a "Black male" in his late 20s to early 30s, wearing a plaid shirt, jeans, had commandeered her car and kidnapped her two children. A composite of her description was published in newspapers worldwide. Smith appeared on television and tearfully pled for her children's lives, telling them "your Momma loves you. Be strong." The pastor of Smith's church said in reference to the Black suspect:

There are some people that would like to see this man's brains bashed in"

Less than two weeks later Smith confessed to killing her own children, 14-month-old Alex and 3-year-old Michael.

The crude stereotype and the lies that often accompany them can have disastrous effect both on the individuals accused but also on the demonized community. Closer to home activists and campaigners will never forget the three Black men who were wrongly convicted for murder of a white woman in 1988 despite the evidence pointing to a ‘blood stained’ white man. For the three men who were jailed for 4 years before their sentences were quashed they had to wait a further 22 years as retired police officers were tried for fabricating evidence.

The lessons of history teach us to be cautious, particularly when it comes to blaming the stereotype. We must all hope that as the Oscar Pistorious case unfolds, the focus remains on what occurred in the house that tragic night, and that Black South Africa does not find itself in the dock.

Simon Woolley