Matie poster inappropriate

AfriForum Youth strongly condemns the depictions of Nazi posters that were put up on the Stellenbosch Campus of the University of Stellenbosch (US) on 9 May 2017.

The graphics on the posters are based on old Nazi propaganda. Despite the text itself not containing any hate speech, the background of the depictions is inappropriate and reminds of the millions of people who lost their lives during the Nazi regime in Germany. The depiction therefore has an undertone of anti-Semitism and racism.

“Because the motive is still unknown, there can only be speculated over who is responsible for the posters, but the affixing of any ideological Nazi nostalgia is strongly condemned by AfriForum Youth. We believe the incident must be investigated,” says Bernard Pieters, AfriForum Youth’s Coordinator for Maties and the Eastern and Western Cape.

“AfriForum Youth condemns all forms of racism and discrimination, irrespective of the race or gender making themselves guilty of such. Although AfriForum Youth strongly condemns the affixing of these posters, we also condemn the apparent double standards that still prevail on our university campuses and in the media, that need to be addressed urgently.”

The fact that the US and the media reacted to this so swiftly, but did not handle utterances such as “one settler, one bullet” in an equivalent manner on campuses, points to these double standards being maintained. Other utterances such as “kill the boer, kill the farmer” also does not enjoy similar media coverage.