Two naked, black mannequins hanging from a tree on the Wits University library lawns left students and social media users aghast.
|||Johannesburg - It left students and social media users aghast on Tuesday as they noticed two naked, black mannequins hanging from a tree on the Wits University library lawns.
Some thought it was a message from angry white students in response to January’s F*** Whites Campaign, with others unsure what it was supposed to mean, but offended.
An upset @Shimane002 tweeted that “White Racism is running amok. Black mannequin lynched at Wits, (and) Black woman called K***** in Mpumalanga,” he tweeted.
@De_Imperial angrily questioned: “Black mannequin hanging at Wits? Are we lynching blacks again?”
@PILLAY_CGLM, who was in disbelief, tweeted that “a mannequin of a black figure hanging by a noose from a tree at Wits”.
Shortly afterwards, he said: “Someone hung a black mannequin from a tree at Wits? That really happened?”
In response to questions from users and students,@WitsUniversity tweeted that the mannequins were part of a student exhibition taking place at the university “as part of the Israeli Apartheid Week programme”.
@pandalovin1703 told@WitsUniversity that the mannequins were emotionally scarring. “As someone who has been in that situation and seen someone hanging themselves, can it be removed asap, undoing years of therapy.”
Later the same day, following the uproar, the Wits Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC), responsible for the exhibit, took them down.
On Wednesday, the Wits PSC issued a statement on its Facebook page apologising for the exhibit and explaining what had prompted it.
“Last week, the Wits PSC was forcibly removed by private security from the library lawns, a public space on campus, after a peaceful balloon release and solidarity rally.
“This event was disrupted by private security, the very same private security paid for using our fees to supposedly protect us on our campus. Protect us from what, we must ask?”
The Wits PSC said it had decided to have a “symbolic installation” to raise awareness and stimulate conversation about how quick Wits is to use force against students on campus through private security.
“The installation itself was intended to represent the “hanging out to dry” of the voices of Wits students. The mannequins, which just happened to be black in colour, were to be used for this purpose and this purpose alone.
The student organisation said the mannequins had been put up late on Monday night but were found undressed in the morning. “The clothes they had on as well as the placards were taken down.”
The Wits PSC added that it “unconditionally apologises for the display on the library lawns depicting mannequins hanging from a tree”.
“While the intention was not to offend, we fully understand the negative impact of the display.”
ilanit.chernick@inl.co.za
@Lanc_02
The Star
