How apartheid killed Johannesburg's cycling culture

[patches]

Wrong!!

 

This one is to be blamed ...

 

 

izinyoka?

[MORNE]

Wrong!!

 

This one is to be blamed ...

snip

wrong again.

 

The guy who lives here invented apartheid...think about it. he put us all in the 'township' whilehe lives in a gated community. He hates bicycles too since the only way to get to the estate is by stairs....

Edited August 15, 2019 by morneS555

[kosmonooit]

Actually there are many societies in which racial segregation was enforced to a far larger and more violent degree than SA, just not necassariley legislated to the same degree as SA. Think Australia and the Aboriginies, the States and the many Indian tribes as well as the slave trade in other racial groups. Those are just the highly obvious examples, there are many many more - just details though 

 

The Immorality Act: once it was against the law to have 'relations' with another race. This got to absurd proportions, like Police raids to bust mixed couples copulating and gathering semen samples off sheets for evidence, I kid you not. This happened in the 70's

 

Yes there was slavery, annihilation of indigenous peoples elsewhere, but lets look at the timing once again, the context of the times.  In the 60's USA was going through the Civil Liberties movement, sexual freedom, popular uprisings against the Vietnam War, recreational drugs etc etc and in European else where as well, times of liberation and freedoms, but here is SA during that same period it was the opposite, Aparheid laws were panning out and being enforced. SA was cut off from the world, bearded men in long back coats set the standards of morality according to their interpretation of the Holy Bible.

[Mamil]

Replies in your text

 

Let’s talk about that mind closed thing a bit shall we?

In 1940 a reporter claims to have counted 91 bicycles cycled by natives in the space of 4 minutes. That would extrapolate to around 1400 bicycles per hour. That’s a heck of a lot of bicycles don’t you think? Did you or anyone else even bother to corroborate that this is indeed a real article.. how many cyclists do you reckon came past that may have been non natives? No of course not.

 

No the article is not corroborated - it is however very unlikely that this reporter was counting the cyclists saying "What a good thing there are so many black guys cycling here" and far more likely that he was counting them with a view to making an argument for what a menace and/or danger they were. It's moot because largely the context of this cited article is not verifiable

The Astra theatre was in orange grove, along Louis Botha Avenue, the closest township to that area is Alexandra which was started before WW1. It is my guess that a lot of these cyclists were probably from Alex. The group areas act was in 1923 a full 17 years before this alleged count in orange grove. Soweto was started in early 1930s , again before 1940. It’s safe to assume that this alleged count was done while segregation was in full swing, ppl were already segregated.

 

Apartheid was simply the escalation and legal codification of a practice that was long in place before the Nationalists came to power in 48. People were already not segregated to by the way - most famously in District 6 and Sophiatown (renamed Triomf) after group areas. So imagine what might have been possible for cycling and all manner of other social mechanisms if instead of forced removals and township planning and Bantu education and and and we had started integrating communities..

Cycling the world over including ZA non natives used to cycle a lot as it was a form of transport that was cheap even school kids Andy as previously pointed out in this thread very few ppl cycle these days relative to let’s say 1947. This was a global phenomenon due to accessibility of mass transport, cheaper cars, and alternative forms f transport. Also jhb being a fairly young city in the 1940 public transport was probably in its infancy compared to later on.

 

This is true - apartheid is not the only factor that restricted the development of cycling as a mode of transport. No one is making that claim. It's defensiveness to the notion that apartheid played a role that has people trying to refute apartheids involvement.

So without a shred of evidence we blame apartheid. Well yeah, that’s easy enough to do. We just close our minds and accept the narrative without having a real think about it. Like white minority capital.

 

A shred of evidence?  -  you sound like the tobacco companies saying theire's no evidence that smoking causes cancer

How many hi aces were counted in 1940 compared to now on that corner? Shall we blame apartheid as well?

 

As a matter of fact yes - by positioning the labour force at such a distance from major centers it presents the society with an infrastructure problem. The taxis have apartheid to thank for their businesses.

Some things are just so easy to swallow as it fits our narrow paradigm, then we liken those that dare challenge it to holocaust denyers in Berlin.

 

It's the same mentality as denialists - the narrow paradigm is yours 

Bell Pottinger had a field day with you.

 

To the contrary - I knew there was a massive social sleight of hand happening the moment Penny Sparrow shot to notoriety and Nene got fired as finance minister. IT is the attitudes embodied in your opinions here, which read like "hey apartheid wasn't so bad and  hasn't really informed and permeated every single aspect of the social fabric from who serves you your cheesburger at the wimpy to what you'll pay for school fees to how the society provides transport infrastructure" that opened the door to Bell Pottinger's hideous antics. At the point where we whiteys express views like yours the black okes usually stay quiet or take their beers to another table. 

What was your rank in the SADF by the way?

 

I am immensely pleased that I avoided the military. IT would have given me nothing on a personal level, I did not need discipline or toughening up or anything else that it may have provided to others of my cohort and I am pleased that I didn't lend any of my time to propping up such a massively stupid system.

[Fat Boab]

Re the previous mention of evidence, or lack thereof. It's worth noting that the article is a soft article, which doesn't require citations or supportive evidence. If such info exists, it might be in the author's thesis or research articles.

[RocknRolla]

Is there perhaps a timeline that we need to adhere to for Apartheid blamists to be tolerated?

Because, I mean, it's been a while. Accountability for what the post apartheid government failed to achieve seems to be non-existent. 

 

But alas, I grew up very sheltered, and I surely did not need a law to change for me to "suddenly" treat all humans with respect and dignity.

I will not apologise for that which I did not do. I was not of voting age in or prior to 1994. I acknowledge how terrible apartheid was, how conscription and the business that was the SANDF was the worst possible way to ensure a way to get money into the country "around" sanctions.

 

Asking me to be apologetic for apartheid, purely because I am white, and was born before 1994, is like asking me to be apologetic on behalf of a murderer, purely because he is male, and lives in JHB.

[Dirkitech]

wrong again.

 

The guy who lives here invented apartheid...think about it. he put us all in the 'township' whilehe lives in a gated community. He hates bicycles too since the only way to get to the estate is by stairs....

glass half empty?

The staircase was simply put there to create an opportunity to see if you'd ride to the occasion!

[MORNE]

glass half empty?

The staircase was simply put there to create an opportunity to see if you'd ride to the occasion!

Not worth the trouble of making it and seeing it is locked and nobody is home

 

 

 

 

OK..... i'll let myself out now

Edited August 15, 2019 by morneS555

[IceCreamMan]

Replies in your text

We are now thinking critically and not just accepting an article just because it’s published. This is good.

 

And we agree the original article cannot be corroborated and we cannot deduce what the rational was ,if in fact it actually exists. So we cannot start coming to conclusions as the author does. While the nats and the term apartheid only came into play later in the 40s thengroup areas act and segregation was already a fact in ZA. Of course certain area still were declared whites only later but the races were segregated already.

 

But one thing sure is strange, given the population figures and demographics of the time there sure appeared to be a heck of a lot of bicycles around in 1940.

 

Maybe a thesis here for a young student hubber to research and present.

[kosmonooit]

Picking up on the 'culture of cycling' as mentioned already, those commuters who cycle are generally doing so due to economic conditions, If and when they could afford a car, or other means, they will surely go that route without hesitation, Look at China for example, how the roads were full of cyclist commuters in the cities only 30 years ago, now just about zilch.

 

The cyclist who cycles to work because they enjoy it and quite likely do have a car and can afford to drive it, or other means, that is perhaps more allgned to the 'culture of cycling' There is a distinction, which the author does not make.

[Mamil]

There is a difference between blaming apartheid for all of our ills and methodically and critically understanding the enormous and ongoing effect that apartheid had in shaping our society. 

 

The language "blaming" implies guilt and as a logical consequence defense against an accusation. This is unfortunate because it means that as white people we then start priotecting ourselves from this accusation which leads us to deny the massive impact that apartheid has and continues to have.

 

Noone is asking for an apology for apartheid. I was in born in 1969 and I feel absolutely no culpability for apartheid but I certainly know that it shaped my sense of myself in the world. How could it not? This is what the point of articles like the one under discussion is - it's an invitation to consider the extent and nature of the wound that apartheid inflicting on our country. To see it as blame isn't useful at all in my view and can only propagate division.

 

Yes politicians use it as a rhetorical device for their own purposes - that's a different discussion though.

 

 

 

Is there perhaps a timeline that we need to adhere to for Apartheid blamists to be tolerated?

Because, I mean, it's been a while. Accountability for what the post apartheid government failed to achieve seems to be non-existent. 

 

But alas, I grew up very sheltered, and I surely did not need a law to change for me to "suddenly" treat all humans with respect and dignity.

I will not apologise for that which I did not do. I was not of voting age in or prior to 1994. I acknowledge how terrible apartheid was, how conscription and the business that was the SANDF was the worst possible way to ensure a way to get money into the country "around" sanctions.

 

Asking me to be apologetic for apartheid, purely because I am white, and was born before 1994, is like asking me to be apologetic on behalf of a murderer, purely because he is male, and lives in JHB.

[Chris_]

Is there perhaps a timeline that we need to adhere to for Apartheid blamists to be tolerated?

Because, I mean, it's been a while. Accountability for what the post apartheid government failed to achieve seems to be non-existent. 

 

But alas, I grew up very sheltered, and I surely did not need a law to change for me to "suddenly" treat all humans with respect and dignity.

I will not apologise for that which I did not do. I was not of voting age in or prior to 1994. I acknowledge how terrible apartheid was, how conscription and the business that was the SANDF was the worst possible way to ensure a way to get money into the country "around" sanctions.

 

Asking me to be apologetic for apartheid, purely because I am white, and was born before 1994, is like asking me to be apologetic on behalf of a murderer, purely because he is male, and lives in JHB.

 

No one is asking you to apologise for being yourself. That's silly and will achieve no forward progress. You're being asked to be tolerant. You're being asked to be cognisant of your surroundings and that it will take generations to undo the effects of Apartheid. You simply cannot flick a switch and undo those years of oppression. You can see the lasting effects all over our country - but only if you actually want to. Remember one of the unique things about our situation is that it was the minorities that controlled the power. It takes a monumental effort to oppress the majority of a country. The scales are so very far skewed. Again, it will take generations to find balance again. Yes there are some rotten eggs around us, all you yourself can do is learn from it and try educate others. Being angry actually solves very little.

 

Writing drivel like this below where you tacitly endorse Apartheid only shows how easy it is to become so selfish. Be careful of always playing the victim. Its tiring and you will always (willfully) lose.

 

meh...there have always been Haves and Have Not's...and there will always be Haves and Have Nots. Whatever name the Haves choose to give their ideologies to maintain a stronghold on what they have...will always be used by the have not's as reason or excuse for not having enough... relatively to the Haves

 

 

 

money, land, food, borders, oil, slaves, livestock, bombs, water.....the list is endless.

 

 

My view.

[RocknRolla]

There is a difference between blaming apartheid for all of our ills and methodically and critically understanding the enormous and ongoing effect that apartheid had in shaping our society. 

 

The language "blaming" implies guilt and as a logical consequence defense against an accusation. This is unfortunate because it means that as white people we then start priotecting ourselves from this accusation which leads us to deny the massive impact that apartheid has and continues to have.

 

Noone is asking for an apology for apartheid. I was in born in 1969 and I feel absolutely no culpability for apartheid but I certainly know that it shaped my sense of myself in the world. How could it not? This is what the point of articles like the one under discussion is - it's an invitation to consider the extent and nature of the wound that apartheid inflicting on our country. To see it as blame isn't useful at all in my view and can only propagate division.

 

Yes politicians use it as a rhetorical device for their own purposes - that's a different discussion though.

 

I agree, one needs to be aware of how we were shaped by our society. There are different means to this end. This highly educated (PHD) author, "should" know better than to use sensationalist methods to "bring awareness" of one small aspect that had impact on the Cycling culture in JHB.

[Plentipotential]

Apartheid will always be blamed. 100 years from now this tune will still be playing.

 

Most people in the world need someone or something to take the fall for their failure, it's human nature. You will get more sympathy, sell more books or get more readers to read your article by blaming Apartheid than if you blamed your Mother/Father/whoever.

[MORNE]

snip

 

Writing drivel like this below where you tacitly endorse Apartheid only shows how easy it is to become so selfish. Be careful of always playing the victim. Its tiring and you will always (willfully) lose.

 

 

 

My view.

 

yea you totally misinterpreted,  was totally not endorsing it, i guess thats the problem with trying to convey emotions over text.

I was just stating that the world has always been unfair and always will be.....and to paraphrase you - "to be careful of not always wanting to be the victim" 

 

anyway...

[Brandon P]

I believe the thousands of Chinese workers who were brought in as labour on the mines in the early 1900s had a huge impact on the shift from walking to commuting by bike. They came here with a commuting culture, bringing bikes with them.