SAHRC to discuss racism on social media

15 February 2017

Johannesburg - The South African Human Rights Commission will host a two-day national hearing on racism and social media in Braamfontein, Johannesburg on Wednesday.

This follows several incidents of racism on social media which have been reported in the media and have caused uproar in the country.

A meme mocking the death of former Springbok captain Joost van der Westhuizen enraged Twitter users last week.

The meme, which depicts Spiderman actor Tobey Maguire grinning with the caption “Me when I hear a white man has died”, was shared by Riaan Lucas.

Last year KwaZulu-Natal realtor Penny Sparrow was at the centre of a race row that gripped the country.

She described black beachgoers as "monkeys", in a Facebook post reacting to litter left behind after New Year’s celebrations.

High Court Judge Mabel Jansen was also accused of making racist comments about black people and rape on Facebook.

Jansen said: "In their culture a woman is there to pleasure them. Period. It is seen as an absolute right and a woman's consent is not required."

This article first appeared on News24, see here.