In my open letter to Mr. Tom Doherty of Tor, I mentioned having fought against real neo-Nazis (as opposed to chimerical ‘neo-Nazis’, a label often misapplied to many supporters of the Puppies side of the Hugo Awards debate). I was referring to the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB, meaning ‘Afrikaner Resistance Movement’), which was one of the hard-right-wing resistance movements attempting to derail the democratization of South Africa and the turning over of power to a government elected by all the people of that country (not just whites).
The AWB was thuggish, violent and crude. Its members murdered more than a few Black people whenever they thought they could get away with it. Its thuggery went on public display when it occupied the World Trade Center in Kempton Park in 1993, where the talks to implement democracy were taking place. On the other hand, when its members came up against determined resistance, they tended to be shocked and horrified that anyone would dare oppose them. It was beyond their comprehension that others would not be afraid of them. In particular, when the AWB tried to invade the ‘homeland’ of Bophutatswana in 1994 to prevent its reincorporation into South Africa, they ran into armed opposition and had to flee ignominiously, leaving several of their number dead. Read the accounts at the link for more information. It was a shambles.
Here’s a documentary about how the AWB tried a last-ditch effort to derail democracy in South Africa, including film of the incidents mentioned above. If you want to see extreme right-wing desperation and Nazi thuggery in action, it’s worth watching. WARNING: You will see men and women be injured. Some will die. It’s not pretty . . . but nothing in South Africa was, in those days.
Thankfully, the AWB failed. I’m glad to have had a hand in helping to thwart it.
Peter
A very intriguing documentary. I've seen the news reports of what was occurring during the transition, but the images really make that knowledge hit home. Thanks for sharing.
You, my friend, were on God's side. As a human being and a Christian, I cannot thank you enough.
SA is now a real schemozzle of corruption. All the whites I've known from SA have emigrated, with one exception. He has legal residency here and manged to get her kids out, all to OZ as she couldn't get them into the US, a country governed by an anti-white clique in FedGov. Now She's having a hard time returning here. She may have to sell out and go onto OZ herself.
Mr. Grant,
I don't mean to speak out of turn, and I am certainly far less familiar with the situation in South Africa than you. Please forgive me if I open up old wounds. I was wondering if you could explain the situation there a bit to me. It is doubtless true that apartheid was, at very least, a deeply flawed and often abusive system, in which black South Africans were denied self-determination and rule over their own communities, as well as basic human dignity.
Is it not also true that the ANC and associated groups were/are largely associated with radical leftism and virulent anti-Boer sentiment, as well as terroristic activities? What about its wink-wink, nudge-nudge attitude toward ethnic cleansing (ala "Kill the Boer")?
I am not familiar with the AWB, and assume that they are as rabidly Nazi-esque as you say, but is it not permissible for Afrikaners to isolate from or defend themselves against the action/inaction of a government that is (at least in some measure) indifferent to hostile to their interests and culture? What about initiatives like the Orania project? Is there no middle ground?
I apologize for any offense I may have given, as it was unintended.
Thank you for your time. May God bless you and yours.
@QEV: No offense given or taken.
Yes, the ANC was and is associated with radical leftism – but even more with nepotism, corruption and incompetence. Yes, some of its members (including the current President of South Africa) were and are very fond of that chant. Now that Mandela is dead, I expect their influence to grow, more's the pity.
Yes, Afrikaners (and any other group) have, to my mind, the right to their own culture. Sadly, their attempt for almost half a century to impose their culture on an entire nation, in which they formed no more than 5% of the population but kept the vast majority of the economic, social, political and other rewards for themselves, has backfired on them. Any attempt to revive their own 'group' or 'homeland' is bound to be regarded as a reversion to the bad old days. They've made their bed, and now . . . (I'm not saying that's just or fair: it's simply reality.)
To understand the undercurrents driving so many evils in South Africa today, try Rian Malan's "My Traitor's Heart": http://goo.gl/kXdxUW . Also worth reading, from a left-wing perspective but nevertheless fairly balanced and insightful, are Allister Sparks' "The Mind of South Africa" ( http://goo.gl/buzFCe ) and "Tomorrow Is Another Country" ( http://goo.gl/IobCN1 ). Those books will explain in detail what I can't address in a brief comment.
Peter, seeing as bow Nazism is a product of national socialist ideas, your going to have to explain to this dumb American how this group were "hard-right wing activists", other than being a white organisation. I'm not questioning their evil, or thuggery, just as Joe Salvo was part of the Commie roots of the ANC. two wings of the same philosify fighting each other, rooted in racism. But that doesn't make it right wing anything, just evil little shits. If I'm wrong, please set me straight.