Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure

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Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure
Presented by Ade Adepitan
Original release
Network Channel 4
Release18 March 2024 (2024-03-18)

Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure is a British documentary presented by Ade Adepitan, about the Afrikaner town of Orania, South Africa. The documentary premiered on Channel 4 on 18 March 2024. [1]

Contents

Synopsis

In the documentary, Ade Adepitan travels to the small town of Orania, South Africa, with his fixer, Kerneels. Adepitan says he hopes to becomes the first black man to spend a week in the town, and aims to understand the opinions of the residents. He wants to determine whether Oranians are racist, or whether their pursuit of racial separatism can "ever be justified". [2]

Set up in the 1990s by and for the Afrikaner community, Orania was created as a safe place for the community to live and work. [3] Following the end of apartheid in 1995, more and more Afrikaners moved to the town, and its population grew from 40 families to 3,000 people. [4]

Orania is considered a controversial place by many, with monuments to old apartheid leaders - including Hendrik Verwoerd, the "architect of apartheid" [5] visible across the town. No black people live in Orania, [4] and it has been labelled a "whites only" town in the press. [6]

Throughout the programme, Adepitan meets a number of Oranian residents, including the son of the town's founder and its former leader, Carel Boshoff IV. In his interview with Adepitan, Boshoff claims that multiculturalism is a form of "social engineering". [2] Elsewhere in the documentary, Adepitan speaks to a teenager who knows very little about Nelson Mandela, despite being South African. Adepitan is also shocked when he is "kicked out" [2] of the town's church, and when a resident brings up the subject of Black Lives Matter, which he considered to be provocative. [2]

Adepitan concludes that it's "too simplistic to brand everyone in Orania a racist", [2] but that they are prejudiced. He thinks many in Orania are traumatised by the end of apartheid, and that they want to recreate their past in Orania. But Adepitan sees this as a form of extreme racial separatism, and says he doesn't want to live in a world where people are "segregated into ethnically cleansed states". [2]

Production

The documentary was produced by Cardiff Productions and Motion Content Group. In the programme, it is revealed that negotiations between the producers and the town went on for months before the town granted access. [2]

Reception

The documentary received mostly positive reviews in the press. One reviewer for The Guardian said it was "a brave attempt to understand South African racial separatists", [7] and another called Adepitan "impressively open-minded and curious". [1] In The Guardian's Letters, the documentary was described as being "observant, astute and shocking". [8] The documentary also received a negative review from The Guardian, which claimed that Adepitan had failed to challenge the racism he encountered. [9]

Following the broadcasting of Whites Only, Adepitan also wrote an article for The Guardian, in response to the large amount of racist and ableist hate he received on social media regarding the documentary. In his article, Adepitan says: "I expected criticism of my documentary, but the racist trolling and support for an apartheid stronghold was truly awful." [10]

On his intentions for the documentary, Adepitan said: "I wanted to understand why these people held such extreme views, what the consequences were, and what lessons could be learned. I also knew many of our viewers had never heard of Orania, so just seeing the town and its inhabitants for them would be a new experience." [10]

Aside from acknowledging the negative comments on social media, Adepitan listed some of the positive comments too: ""I had no idea this place existed. It's blown my mind," was one tweet I received. "Lordy, lord, that place is a cult-like construction site" said another. "The prejudices and worldview of the adult population is disturbing enough, but the kids who grow up under the glass dome. Just wow." "What an eye opener," tweeted a third. "It's like they're stuck in some sort of weird apartheid timewarp. Well done for seeing it out."" [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hendrik Verwoerd</span> Prime Minister of South Africa from 1958 to 1966

Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd, also known as H. F. Verwoerd, was a South African politician, scholar, and newspaper editor who was Prime Minister of South Africa and is commonly regarded as the architect of apartheid and nicknamed the "father of apartheid". Verwoerd played a significant role in socially engineering apartheid, the country's system of institutionalized racial segregation and white supremacy, and implementing its policies, as Minister of Native Affairs (1950–1958) and then as prime minister (1958–1966). Furthermore, Verwoerd played a vital role in helping the far-right National Party come to power in 1948, serving as their political strategist and propagandist, becoming party leader upon his premiership. He was the Union of South Africa's last prime minister, from 1958 to 1961, when he proclaimed the founding of the Republic of South Africa, remaining its prime minister until his assassination in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Party (South Africa)</span> 1914–1997 political party known for implementing apartheid

The National Party, also known as the Nationalist Party, was a political party in South Africa from 1914 to 1997, which was responsible for the implementation of apartheid rule. The party was an Afrikaner ethnic nationalist party, which initially promoted the interests of Afrikaners but later became a stalwart promoter and enactor of white supremacy, for which it is best known. It first became the governing party of the country in 1924. It merged with its rival, the SAP, during the Great Depression, and a splinter faction became the official opposition during World War II and returned to power. With the National Party governing South Africa from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994, the country for the bulk of this time was only a de jure or partial democracy, as from 1958 onwards non-white people were barred from voting. In 1990, it began to style itself as simply a South African civic nationalist party, and after the fall of apartheid in 1994, attempted to become a moderate conservative one. The party's reputation was damaged irreparably by perpetrating apartheid, and it rebranded itself as the New National Party in 1997 before eventually dissolving in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging</span> South African neo-Nazi political party

The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, commonly known by its abbreviation AWB, is an Afrikaner nationalist, neo-Nazi political party in South Africa. Since its founding in 1973 by Eugène Terre'Blanche and six other far-right Afrikaners, it has been dedicated to secessionist Afrikaner nationalism and the creation of an independent Boer-Afrikaner republic or "Volkstaat/Boerestaat" in part of South Africa. During bilateral negotiations to end apartheid in the early 1990s, the organisation terrorised and killed black South Africans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orania</span> Town in Northern Cape, South Africa

Orania is a white separatist South African town founded by Afrikaners. It is located along the Orange River in the Karoo region of the Northern Cape province. The town is split in two halves by the R369 road, and is 871 kilometres (541 mi) from Cape Town and approximately 680 kilometres (420 mi) from Pretoria. Its climate is semi-arid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 South African republic referendum</span>

A referendum on becoming a republic was held in South Africa on 5 October 1960. The Afrikaner-dominated right-wing National Party, which had come to power in 1948, was avowedly republican and regarded the position of Queen Elizabeth II as the South African monarch as a relic of British imperialism. The National Party government subsequently organised the referendum on whether the then Union of South Africa should become a republic. The vote, which was restricted to whites—the first such national election in the union—was narrowly approved by 52.29% of the voters. The Republic of South Africa was constituted on 31 May 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ade Adepitan</span> British television presenter and sportsman

Adedoyin Olayiwola "Ade" Adepitan is a Nigerian-born British television presenter and wheelchair basketball player. As a presenter, he has hosted a range of travel documentaries and sports programmes for BBC television. Adepitan is a disability advocate and one of the first physically disabled television presenters in the UK, with a career of over 20 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volkstaat</span> Proposed state for Afrikaners of South Africa

A Volkstaat, also called a Boerestaat, is a proposed White homeland for Afrikaners within the borders of South Africa, most commonly proposed as a fully independent Boer/Afrikaner nation. The proposed state would exclude Afrikaans-speaking Coloureds but accept South Africans of English ancestry and other White South Africans, if they accept Afrikaner culture and customs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaner nationalism</span> Political ideology in South Africa

Afrikaner nationalism is a nationalistic political ideology created by Afrikaners residing in Southern Africa during the Victorian era. The ideology was developed in response to the significant events in Afrikaner history such as the Great Trek, the First and Second Boer Wars and the resulting anti-British sentiment that developed among Afrikaners and opposition to South Africa's entry into World War I.

Vereniging van Oranjewerkers is a South African white separatist political movement that seeks a homeland for Afrikaners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carel Boshoff</span> South African academic, writer and politician, former proponent of Apartheid, founder of Orania

Carel Willem Hendrik Boshoff was a South African professor of theology and Afrikaner white nationalist.

Kleinfontein is a culturally segregated, Afrikaner-only settlement near Pretoria, South Africa that was founded in 1992. Members of the African National Congress and Democratic Alliance youth have denounced the settlement and the continued existence of Afrikaner-only settlements in post-Apartheid South Africa.

AfriForum is a South African non-governmental organisation which mainly focuses on the interests of Afrikaners, a subgroup of the country's white population. AfriForum has been described as a "white nationalist, alt-right, and Afrikaner nationalist group", though this description is rejected by the organisation's leadership, who refer to themselves as a civil rights group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kommandokorps</span> Afrikaner survivalist paramilitary organization

Kommandokorps is an Afrikaner survivalist group active in South Africa. The leader is Colonel Franz Jooste, who served with the South African Defence Force during the apartheid era.

Antisemitism in South Africa is the manifestation of hostility, prejudice or discrimination against South African Jews or Judaism as a religious, ethnic or racial group. This form of racism has affected Jews since South Africa's Jewish community was established in the 19th century.

The Accord on Afrikaner self-determination is a South African political accord that recognises the right of the Afrikaner people on self-determination. The accord was signed by the Freedom Front, the African National Congress and the National Party-led South African government on 23 April 1994.

The Orania Representative Council is the local municipal representative council in the Northern Cape province of South Africa that governs the Afrikaner-town of Orania in the Pixley ka Seme District Municipality. During the implementation of a new municipal system in South Africa in 2000, the Orania Representative Council was the only representative council that was not abolished. Therefore, the Orania Representative Council is the only municipal body that still uses the old (pre-2000) municipal structure, based on the Local Government Transition Act of 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Betsie Verwoerd</span> Wife of Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd

Elizabeth "Betsie" Verwoerd was the spouse of the Prime Minister of South Africa from 2 September 1958 until the assassination of her husband Hendrik Verwoerd on 6 September 1966.

Wynand Johannes Boshoff is a South African academic and politician from the Northern Cape serving as a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa for the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) since 2019. He has been serving as the Provincial Leader of the FF+ since 2015. He previously served as a municipal councillor of the Sol Plaatje Local Municipality from 2016 to 2019. Boshoff is the grandson of the assassinated apartheid-era Prime Minister of South Africa, Hendrik Verwoerd, who served from 1958 until 1966, and the son of Afrikaner enclave Orania founder, Carel Boshoff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carel Boshoff IV</span> South African politician and writer

Carel Willem Hendrik Boshoff, is a South African politician and writer known for being the leader of the Afrikaner-only town Orania.

References

  1. 1 2 Richardson, Hollie; Catterall, Ali; Virtue, Graeme; Seale, Jack; Wardell, Simon (18 March 2024). "TV tonight: what happened when a Black broadcaster visited a 'whites-only' town in South Africa?". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure". Channel 4.
  3. ↑ "The Rainbow Nation's Whites-Only Town". www.forbesafrica.com. 1 February 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  4. 1 2 Singh, Anita. "Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure, review: is apartheid alive and well in South Africa?". The Telegraph.
  5. ↑ "Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd | South African History Online". www.sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  6. ↑ "'An indictment of South Africa': whites-only town Orania is booming". The Guardian. 24 October 2019. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  7. ↑ Ellen, Barbara (24 March 2024). "The week in TV: Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure; 3 Body Problem; Palm Royale; Jordan North: The Truth About Vaping – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  8. ↑ "The moral response to racism and hatred". The Guardian. 31 March 2024. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  9. ↑ Latif, Leila (18 March 2024). "Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure review – a woeful failure to challenge racism". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  10. 1 2 3 Adepitan, Ade (26 March 2024). "Visiting a whites-only town in South Africa was difficult. Even sadder was the racist backlash in the UK". The Guardian.
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