CAPE TOWN - Radio host Gareth Cliff found himself in hot water again following public outrage over comments dismissing racism struggles as “unimportant”.
The controversial radio host and businessman again ruffled feathers after he was seen talking over One South Africa Movement member Mudzuli Rakhivhane and dismissing her views on racism in an episode of Cliff-Central.Com’s The Burning Platform.
The show, which aired on Thursday (October 21), includes various political commentators and journalists as they tackle the big news stories of the week and dissect the current trends in politics.
During the show, Rakhivhane was debating the issue of the DA’s controversial election posters in Phoenix with
DA leader John Steenhuisen. In the debate, Cliff said he didn’t think many people were interested in racism in the local elections and said the SA Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) found that racism was “at the bottom of their list of priorities”. In response Rakhivhane said that those people did not experience the kind of racism she experienced on a daily basis. “To say that it’s something no one cares about is really offensive,” she said.
The host, however, then interjected and said her “personal experience is completely anecdotal and unimportant to all of us”. The One South Africa Movement member defended herself and called Cliff out for thinking that the experience of a black woman living in South Africa was “unimportant”.
“Mudzuli, I’m not interested in identity politics. Nobody is, they’re only interested in themselves,” he said.
Cliff added that he was over it and again said it was uninteresting.
After the episode was published, Rakhivhane posted a clip of the interaction on social media lambasting Cliff and Steenhuisen for talking over her and telling her that her experiences as a black woman in South Africa “did not matter”.
“Racism is structural and even operates at a municipal level. The literal definition of Black Lives Don’t Matter,” she said.
The video soon trended across South Africa with public outcry against The Burning Platform and Cliff.
When they try to talk over you and tell you that your experiences as a black woman in South Africa do not matter🤦![CDATA[]]>🏽♀️. Racism is structural and even operates at a municipal level. The literal definition of black lives don’t matter. 💀 pic.twitter.com/i2KcVzjcCd
— Mudzuli Rakhivhane (@mudzy_r) October 22, 2021
Numerous political and public leaders weighed in.
Nando’s, the sponsors of The Burning Platform, terminated its sponsorship “with immediate effect”.
Cape Times