But let’s first look at what he did and not got suspended.
- He emptied a bucket of human shit over a statue of Cecil John Rhodes
- He got arrested for showing his middle (f*ck you) finger at President Jacob Zuma.
No, this was not nearly good enough for a suspension, according to a statement by the university.
The real reason? .
- On Mayday‚ May 1‚ Maxwele went into the Mathematics building of UCT after being informed that “as it was a public holiday‚ all lecture theatres and classrooms were locked. Once inside, he
- Raised his voice at a white lecturer (who was in the department to mark student papers)‚ saying she was ‘a white woman who takes all the rights of the black students’
- Shouted aggressively that ‘it’s time for all whites to go’
- Said he was not interested in the opinion of whites and that they should be killed;
- Continuously shouted and swore at the lecturer and two other witnesses
- Started banging on the lecturer’s office door (after she had entered the office and locked her door)
- When the lecturer opened the door‚ pushed her
- Continued to shout and scream and bang on her desk
- Said ‘we must not listen to whites‚ we do not need their apologies‚ they have to be removed from UCT and have to be killed’
We can guess what Maxwele’s version of events was. It’s always the same.
He said:
- The staff member had victimised him
- Then racially profiled him
Thankfully the university holds that Maxwele’s actions were unprovoked.
Unsurprisingly the ANC Youth League is standing by Maxwele. They have released a statement that reads: “He is definitely being victimised by UCT and we will support him. As the ANCYL‚ we want to see transformation‚ especially at UCT. We feel this is a conspiracy against Maxwele. We’ve seen the same happening during apartheid when activists were targeted.”
