How many times have we not heard the word Rainbow
Nation? What does it even mean? Although especially
used to describe South Africa in the post-apartheid era, naming it a ‘Rainbow
Nation’ is an oxymoron… Originally
coined metaphorically by
Archbishop Desmond Tutu and later used extensively by late President
Nelson Mandela, it was meant to stand for the union of all cultures, religions,
races and politics. This being in contrast to only white or black
viewpoints.
South African poet/politician/academic, Jeremy Cronin, summed it
up perfectly: ‘… true reconciliation has been foregone in place of a simplified and somewhat candy-coated myth of peace that has served to reconcile those on the inside whilst pitting them against those on the outside. Allowing ourselves to sink into a smug rainbow-ism, will prove to be a terrible betrayal of the possibilities for real transformation, real reconciliation,
and real national unity, that are still at play in our
contemporary South African reality.’
So let us consider a different metaphorical viewpoint on colour.
The colour white is obtained by combining all the visible colours of the rainbow:
Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet.
The colour black is obtained by combining magenta/red, yellow and cyan/blue.
In holistic terms colours have the following meanings:
White – Is a colour associated
with purity, innocence, understanding, humility and new beginnings.
Black – Is a formal, elegant
colour that represents seriousness, power, authority, rebellion and strong
emotions.
Red – Commonly symbolises
confidence, courage, love, passion, sensitivity and leadership.
Orange – Symbolises joy, passion,
enthusiasm, creativity, change, determination and fun.
Yellow – Is a colour of warmth,
communication, confidence and cheerfulness.
Green – Is the colour of life,
nature, harmony, freshness and safety.
Blue – Is a colour that
represents faith, loyalty, trust, wisdom and stability.
Indigo – A colour that symbolises
wealth, devotion, peace, mystery, independence and magic.
Violet – Is a colour that
represents the future, imagination, enlightenment and humility.
Instead of whites blaming blacks and blacks blaming whites in regards to racism, why don’t we
think of each other in the colours that contribute to our individual make up?
Only then, will we see that neither whites nor blacks reign
supreme in the visual spectrum…
None of us chose what colour we where born into. Instead,
we should embrace our differences and look at each other through a kaleidoscope
of colourful similarities.
According to the above colour meanings:
As a white you should see blacks as being confident,
passionate, joyful, sensitive, loyal and trusting.
As a black you should see whites as being confident,
passionate, joyful, sensitive, loyal and humble.
No matter which colour you think you are, the similarities can
be seen by analysing the colour spectrums’ holistic meanings.
Like it or not, we are all ‘Homo Sapiens’ and various studies have shown that
all human DNA are 99.9% the same, whether you are
African, American, Asian or European. The last 0.1%
being responsible for skin colour and skull shapes.
Personally I think the whole race issue has become
ridiculous. Growing up in the old South Africa, I wasn’t raised a racist,
but it was frowned upon to mix with other races. Today we have the opportunity
to mix with all races without prejudice.
Whenever people ask me what I am, I always say: “I
am not a racist, I am a realist!” I judge people on their
capabilities and mutual respect, not their colour.
It is true, you get your 'bad
apples' in every
culture. For example, I know better mannered and educated black people
than some white people and vice versa.
How can we judge the capabilities of a race in accordance with
the actions of those 'bad' individuals, who make their culture seem
unworthy? We should rather look into our own cultures to teach respect in
our children, especially for our fellow human beings.
Children are not born racist, they learn that from
society...
My kids asked me one day when they were still in primary school: ‘Why
do some of our friends at school, have Black/Coloured/Indian fathers and
mothers…?’ It sounded funny at first, until I realised
the innocence with which they said it, and that they hadn’t even noticed that
their friends were of colour.
Why does society respect sexual choice and religion, but not
differences in colour and culture?
We are NOT a Rainbow Nation!!! We are a hypocritical
nation full of self-importance, greed and emptiness!!!
Shame on you!!!
I beg of you, if you can’t change your attitude, at least stop
teaching your vile thoughts to your children.
They have the right to decide for themselves and don’t need your
coaxing. They might actually have a future then.
So forget about the Rainbow Nation. In order to move
forward we need to see the similarities we share.
For goodness sake, embrace your heritage, colour and culture!
Our goal should be ONE NATION!
Follow me on twitter: Neil Holtshausen@HoltshausenNeil