this post was submitted on 20 Oct 2023
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[–] [email protected] 112 points 1 year ago (70 children)

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima were leaving the Slave Lodge building in central Cape Town when a small group of protesters representing South Africa’s First Nations groups -- the earliest inhabitants of the region around Cape Town -- surrounded the royal couple and shouted slogans about Dutch colonizers stealing land from their ancestors.

They were literally there to pay a visit to a museum about the atrocities of previous Dutch inhabitants in the land. I don't know what harassing them was supposed to accomplish.

[–] [email protected] 64 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

First, protest’s don’t necessarily need to accomplish anything, people are allowed to be angry.

Second, the black white wealth inequality in South Africa is still insane and the Dutch are partially responsible for that. Plus you can’t really buy groceries from awareness or excuses.

Third, as a Dutch guy I don’t really mind them being uncomfortable for a bit once in a while, keeps them grounded.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (2 children)

First, protest’s don’t necessarily need to accomplish anything, people are allowed to be angry.

Obviously, people are allowed to be angry. The question is whether the anger is productive.

Third, as a Dutch guy I don’t really mind them being uncomfortable for a bit once in a while, keeps them grounded.

Sure, but shouldn't the protest have been, I don't know, elsewhere than the visit to the museum? It's a very "No good deed goes unpunished" - it's a small act, sure, but surely making the museum visit the locus for the discomfort is just discouraging high-profile figures from acknowledging these sins?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Why?

They made some tokenisation effort to look like they gave a shit, why should that be rewarded?

“Oh we understand you’re still suffering and that we are partially responsible but we went inside that nice air conditioned building and had a guided tour for us after they closed the place down to every other visitor just for us. So like it’s really mean that you’re still angry at us right now”

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (5 children)

Man, if your poinit of view is that you want to discourage high-profile people from visiting these museums because their blood is impure or whatever, I don't know what to tell you, other than that all that'll result in is less exposure to these places and these sins.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I think OP's point was not disregard idea that humans should reflect upon mistakes of the past. There was no reward for that unless you meant protesters being rewarded by verbally hurting someone who actually pays respect to the cause.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Remind them where their wealth came from, that real people remain affected by it... More (all) rich people should be confronted this way, if not with violence

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

When a monarch actually cares about systemic injustice or the origin of their wealth, they just abolish the monarchy.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Make them leave and never come back, that's what most victims want from their abusers.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Maybe putting a spotlight on where the Dutch Slave Trade began?

[–] [email protected] 30 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Isn't that the whole point of the visit? The museum is about the slavery imposed by Dutch colonists on South Africa at the time.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

"Oh look there's grandpa with his collection of severed hands. I think we still have that chair!"

It's hard to take this as anything more than looking sad as conspicuously as possible.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don't think they meant location, I think they meant where to place blame, where to direct anger.

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