OPINIONISTA: Stellenbosch University paper on coloured women symptom of a wider academic malaise By Clive W Kronenberg
The recent study by Stellenbosch University scholars on the intellectual abilities of coloured women elicited widespread anger and contestation in academia, eventually leading to their publication being retracted by the journal in question.What essentially emerges from this unfortunate episode is merely a substantiation of the position dozens of Brazilian social scientists have advanced for several years now.
Towards inaugurating a more inclusive and equal social landscape, in the early years of the new millennium, the Brazilian government – like the South African government, to some degree – sought to pin its hopes on affirmative action policies . Previously simply designated “Brazilian”, the citizens of that country would be assigned particular racial tags, presumably to accelerate and enhance social equality, quite a familiar tale.
Notwithstanding economic inequality, which inevitably spawns competition and rivalry, could the impetuous eruptions in bigoted attitudes and behaviour in South Africa be ascribed to the resurrection of racial stratification in the country? Official approaches to bring about economic sustainability, as well as national unity, appear to have been catastrophic when we consider both our current economic and national situations.
Needless to say, the positivist position is wholly ambivalent, and steers clear of engaging in established, scientific findings on the subject. Further, to consider the denial of racial categories as a form of perpetuating human oppression, is simply ludicrous. This perception remains prominent in academia because it is seldom if ever subjected to critical engagement. That the overwhelming majority of the South African citizenry remains marginalised and underdeveloped is there for all to see.
In his critical evaluation of South African affirmative action policy, Alexander cautioned that it is not skin colour but social circumstances wrought by highly unequal economic relations that ultimately determine an individual’s fate or progress in life . Customarily highlighted in these circles is the ultimate aim of “race-making” – the carving up of the national community for enhanced capitalist control and exploitation.
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