CHAPTER 8: SOUTH AFRICANS’ TIES WITH AFRICAN MIGRANTS
8.4. Impact of African identity on network ties
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have become assimilated into their cultural sphere in the sense that they adopt some of their culture, like learning Zulu, accepting Zulu cultural practices and dropping the stereotypes they (egos) have about South Africans. Unlike Thami and Thembi’s egos, Nedu had assimilated some of Sthe’s culture. This is similar to Fortiers’s (2007) explanation of the host’s expectation of assimilation by the migrant. According to her, “the problem of living together becomes a problem of ‘them’ adjusting to ‘our’ values, being gracious guests in our home” (Fortiers 2007: 107). By implication, migrants are welcome as long as they tone down those differences that do not suit their host’s cultural fabric, and adopt those of the host.
Paradoxically, there were alters that liked and accepted their egos’ cultural differences. Sne and Ntando show signs of hospitality, conviviality and cosmopolitanism in their ties with their egos. There was acculturation of alters like Sne who imbibed some of the cultures of her ego through their interaction. Ntando developed a sense of universality irrespective of the cultural diversity between him and his ego. Gsir (2014: 9) argues that such “social contacts between different groups have a favourable effect on mutual perceptions and reduce negative attitudes”. The relationship, or to borrow from Gsir (2014), social contacts Ntando had with Tracy led to the development of social bridging capital that created a sense of universal homogeneity which was bigger than the South African and Nigerian divide and encompassed an African sense of identity.
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my brother then I can accept an Igbo or any other Nigerian (Interviewed 7/12/14).
Another alter Bongi, middle class male alter to Chukwudi, a middle class male ego, responded
Never! From the first day we met I just took to him. I have heard a lot of bad things about Nigerians but this did not impact on our relationship. I relate with him as I would relate to anyone… The reason is that I have travelled a lot and I have worked in six African countries including Nigeria. These people were very welcoming and it taught me a lot (Interviewed 29/11/14).
Futhi, a middle class alter, who had stated that her tie with her ego, Funmi was not important to her, said,
Not in anyway. I will treat her the way I would treat other South Africans. I apply Ubuntu (humanity to everyone) in my dealings with people irrespective of where they come from. I have a lot of African migrants as friends even family. My cousin is married to a Congolese and they have children together.
African immigrant or not our relationship will be the same (Interviewed 21/09/14)
Irrespective of diversity, social capital was employed as a bridge to foster interaction. This is in line with Fields’ argument that when diversity exists within networks, social capital enables the formation of ties by bringing together people from different social divisions (2003). Sne is a typical example of the effect of entanglement on diversity. Nuttal (2001: 9) describes entanglement as being intertwined in a process where intimacy is gained (Nuttall 2001: 9). The interaction between Sne and her ego, Paul exemplifies a scenario where diversity is present but does not hinder the process of entanglement. Bongi is able to relate easier to migrants due to his experience of travelling across Africa which has made him more open to and tolerate of different African cultures and peoples. Bongi might thus be described as cosmopolitan, insofar as cosmopolitans are people that are fond of migrating, who develop social networks across borders or feel at home everywhere they go (Yarram and Shetty 2014). This gives them a sense of “in-betweenness” which implies “belonging to more than one ethnic and cultural localism simultaneously” (Werbner 1999: 34). As noted in Chapter two, cosmopolitanism involves “openness towards cultural difference, as a normative ideal
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acknowledging the moral worth of the individual regardless of origin or as a new type of political project addressing the limitations of the nation-state in a globalising world” (Haupt 2010: 6). It is from such perspectives of de-territorialization and openness that Bongi is able to relate to diversity. He has travelled widely, experienced diverse cultures, and developed ties and networks across various cultural and geographical boundaries. As he explains, this makes him more open to the cultural diversity of migrants.
Conversely, nine (28%) alters responded that the fact that the egos are African immigrants impacted on their relationships. They included two middle class males, five working class males, one middle class female and one working class female. Most of these alters were working class males and few were females. The reasons provided for their answers include cultural differences, stereotypes about African migrants and the alters’ past experiences with other African migrants. Sandile, a middle class male alter identified by Fatima, a working class ego, as her most important South African tie stated that
…Nigerians are mostly involved in clandestine activities and this unconsciously keeps me on my toes. I am very careful when dealing with her.
It’s not that she’s a bad person, shame she’s not. I guess I am just being careful. You know them. Yoh! They are clever (Interviewed 20/11/14).
Another alter, Vusi, a working class male identified by Jerry, a working class male ego, stated that
Yes it has. We are from two different worlds. Yes we are all Africans but our cultures are different. For example he (ego) does not respect our ancestors. I am a practicing Christian and a church leader, but we must respect our tradition. He calls it idol worship and it is disrespectful to me (Interviewed 06/12/14).
Clearly, in these cases bridging social capital is a challenge due to fear of differences and the minimal level of trust within the network. Enduring stereotypes founded on socio-cultural differences have impacted on the development of trust between the egos and alters. This has also impacted on their ability to acknowledge and tolerate each other’s humanity. This is somewhat in line with Steenkamp’s (2009) finding that the absence of trust between South Africans and African migrants is responsible for the exclusive nature of the relationships that
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have evolved (Steenkamp 2009). However, this may not be due to fundamental differences between South Africans and African immigrants, because, as noted earlier, other alters (Ntombi, Sne, Futhi, and Bongi) and egos (Toju, and Nedu) acknowledged that through sustained interaction they have come to realise they have similar cultures and worldviews.
Rather, the lack of trust between South Africans and Nigerian immigrants in this case stems from general stereotypes about social differences which in many ways help fuel xenophobic behaviour against Nigerians and other African immigrants. For example, the stereotype that all Nigerians are criminals; drug lords, drug peddlers and financial scammers or that they are idolatrous27 on the one hand, and too westernized to respect Zulu ancestral worship, on the other, can be seen in Vusi’s comments above and those of Thami (alter) about Osehi (ego) in the Likes/Dislikes section.