S. African’s racist rant at black police officer sparks outrage

"You see a lot more racism online because people don’t have to use their real names"

Brett Fish Anderson is a South African writer and blogger who often writes about issues of race in his society. 
 

People are more likely to say racist things in public when they are in stressful situation, just like this woman. It also comes out when people are drunk or when they are at big sporting events. Often, little incidents can trigger this kind of tirade. That said, we don’t see these sort of scenes happen in public every day. What we do see is people posting racist things online because they can hide behind a fake name. 

I noticed that when people say this kind of thing, their friends and family often say “Oh, she isn’t usually like that!” or something of that nature. But I still think these outbursts reveal that people do have racist thoughts. 

"People who make racist comments are often judged most harshly on social media”
It is very rare for people to be prosecuted for racist comments. However, they are often judged severely on social media. When they are caught on camera, it can have a very real impact on their social and professional lives. 
For example, the video we are talking about was widely shared and most of the comments are very critical of the woman. 

I did read one comment that was more sympathetic. It mentioned that she had just been robbed – as if that gave her the right to insult and threaten all black people. 

Even though racism is still widespread in South Africa, I do feel like mentalities are changing. For example, I am part of the movement #NotOnOurWatch, which encourages people to speak out when they witness racist acts or derogatory language, whether in real life or online. That said, we still have a long way to go.