It has been about a week since Tumi Morake made the stolen bicycle analogy on Jacaranda FM that got Afrikaans trade union, Solidarity and other white South Africans bothered but the fallout continues.
The discussion came about as a result of the cancellation of Steve Hofmeyr's appearances in New Zealand and quickly turned into a discussion about culture and the apartheid legacy. According to Centurion news website, Rekord, Morake apparently said that white people were bullies on the playground that stole bicycles from black people, and instead of being punished for the theft, they now had to share the bike and play together.
Huffington Post South Africa now reports that Pretoria-based furniture business, Eric Barnard Meubels, has pulled its advertising from Jacaranda FM because they do not want to be associated with a station that "gets involved with politics and mix it with business".
Marius Barnard, who is a manager and director of the store, confirmed to the publication that they had informed the station of their intention to cut ties yesterday (Monday, 18 September) after a business relationship that has lasted over 25 years.
Barnard is reported as saying, "comments made by that lady [Tumi Morake] are very racial and political... I cannot associate with a station that takes one side," before adding "by taking away the advertising, we are saying enough is enough."
Barnard then went on to retort that he is not racist as his children "have black friends"and that black people should "stop saying we [white people] are to blame for their problems."
A Facebook page, titled Boikot Jacaranda 94.2 FM / Boycott Jacaranda 94.2 FM has also been established and currently has over 28,000 likes/followers. The page seems to be affiliated with another page that calls for people to Boycott Spur.
The EFF in Gauteng has spoken out against Jacaranda FM listeners and all those calling for the boycott of the station.
"Jacaranda FM is Afrikaans and white, all of [its listeners] suffer from [a] laager mentality," said acting chairperson of the EFF in Gauteng, Mandisa Mashigo in an interview with the publication.
Mashigo also added that Jacaranda FM listeners think they are entitled to be 'openly racist' and that the radio station was created for them.
Main image credit: marieclaire.co.za