The Undignified Battle: Chidimma Adetshina’s Experience in the Miss SA Pageant

Exploring Identity, Xenophobia, and the Complexities of South African Nationalism

In a week of celebrations, we watched multiple South Africans reach for their dreams as they competed for gold at the Olympics. This was juxtaposed with the undignified comments directed at Chidimma Adetshina, who was attacked for her identity due to claims that she was "not truly South African" as she prepared to compete in the Miss SA pageant, from which she later withdrew. However, in the end, did people successfully achieve their goal of finding a "true" South African?

It is important to acknowledge the facts and engage with the Constitution when considering Chidimma Adetshina's case. In her application video, she acknowledged that neither of her parents was South African, with her father being Nigerian and her mother of Mozambican descent. Her lineage was not South African, but she was born in South Africa to parents who, at the time, had residency in the country, which made her a South African citizen. However, after an investigation prompted by Adetshina herself, prima facie evidence indicated that identity theft and fraud involving her mother may have occurred, possibly impacting another woman. Due to this, Adetshina decided to withdraw from Miss South Africa, even though the state recognized that she could not have been involved in the alleged crime, as she was an infant at the time.

This raised outrage among many South Africans, with calls for the celebrities who had come to her defense to apologize. However, like all South Africans, they were not aware of the information about the alleged fraud and identity theft. They were highlighting a much more important issue: xenophobia, and more specifically, the Afrophobia that Adetshina experienced throughout the process.

It is important to clarify the difference between xenophobia and Afrophobia. According to Google, xenophobia is the “dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries.” This is independent of race and applies to all foreign individuals. Afrophobia, on the other hand, is racism targeted at individuals of African descent, which clearly impacts people of color disproportionately. In South Africa, we have a significant degree of Afrophobia and tend to stray away from xenophobia, as we have many white populations of Dutch and English descent who receive almost no form of hatred. This raises a concern that South African-born individuals of color are forced to fit some arbitrary criteria to be seen as truly South African.

Swarms of individuals took to social media to discredit Adetshina due to a celebration posted with her family, who appeared to be of Nigerian ethnicity. When Minister of Sports, Arts, and Culture Gayton McKenzie tweeted that it gave “funny vibes,” it was clear that there was a desire to place doubt on her even before the ruling. Although an alleged crime was uncovered in the end, it was inhumane to hold Adetshina accountable for the wrongdoing of her parents. Guilt by association is something that has never existed in the rule of law and should not exist within public discourse.

Many on social media justified and defended the hate directed at an African individual due to the crime that was uncovered after the investigation, yet they failed to address the root cause of their hatred and undignified comments. In the end, after all the slurs and dehumanizing words shared on social media that attacked the Adetshina family for not being "South African enough," Miss SA went to Mia Leroux, who also failed to fit the criteria many imposed on Adetshina. This is not to discredit Leroux's success in the pageant, as she earned her right to compete like all the other contestants, but it paints a clear disparity that is starting to emerge in South Africa.

It seems that if you are a successful South African, regardless of your ethnicity, we are keen to celebrate you within your success. Tendai Mtawarira was championed as a Springbok despite being born in Zimbabwe. Trevor Noah, born to a German father, is considered the pride of South Africa. But when a South African-born individual, born in Soweto’s Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, competes rightfully within her rights to be part of Miss SA, we have an issue.

There is a fine line that all South Africans need to navigate because, although many believe they are well within their rights to question the nationality and ethnicity of individuals, it should not aim to degrade or disregard the humanity of the individual. The one time it worked in favor of those who encouraged hatred towards Adetshina, they were not justified in their actions.

It is important that we, as South Africans, do not forget how our neighboring African countries, such as Zambia, Namibia, and Zimbabwe, housed many ANC comrades when they were banned in South Africa. It was in these countries that leaders of the ANC were able to strategize and organize the liberation of all South Africans. So, we mustn't be quick to disregard and degrade our African counterparts because they are very much part of the reason why we are here today.

In a country where opportunities become more and more limited and the cost of living continues to rise, we should not become like many Western countries that are quick to blame the same immigrants who built up many of their nations. We must also remember that we all come from somewhere else if we truly interrogate our lineage.

As saddening as it was to watch Adetshina have her dreams stripped away from her, in part due to her parents' wrongdoing and in part due to the flurry of hatred she received, we need to question why we are so quick to discredit people of color who are African yet unwilling to do the same to ourselves.