Gayton McKenzie faces a firestorm over resurfaced racial slurs, sparking hypocrisy claims and cabinet dismissal calls

Key topics:McKenzie accused of hypocrisy over past racial slurs.ActionSA reports minister to Human Rights Commission.Opposition parties demand McKenzie’s dismissal from Cabinet.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Kerry Lanaghan.Sports, Arts and Culture Minister and Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie is under intense political fire after resurfaced tweets show him repeatedly using South Africa’s most offensive racial slur. The posts from 2011 and 2017 have reignited debate over who is entitled to use such language - and whether context can ever justify it.According to a Daily Maverick report, McKenzie used the K-word in at least six tweets, claiming it was to highlight harmful racial attitudes rather than endorse them. Many black South Africans have rejected that defence, noting McKenzie’s public insistence on identifying as coloured, not black, and arguing he has no right to use the word in any context.The revelations came shortly after McKenzie publicly condemned and took legal aim at the young black hosts of the Open Chats podcast, according to News24, for making derogatory comments about coloured South Africans, calling them “incestuous” and “crazy.” McKenzie said on X that “racism has no place in South Africa” and warned that “to let them continue as if nothing happened is the surest way of destroying them.”But political opponents have accused McKenzie of hypocrisy. Over the weekend, old tweets resurfaced showing not only repeated use of the K-word, but also posts perceived as disparaging towards black people, including one stating: “Not all white guys that make black guys sit at the back of a bakkie are racist, some of these guys stink as hell and I would do the same.”ActionSA has seized on the controversy, formally complaining to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). In a press statement, the party said McKenzie’s remarks “served to degrade and dehumanise black South Africans” and “no reasonable person can defend [them] as anything other than racist and demeaning.”While expressing doubts about the SAHRC’s effectiveness, ActionSA said it would “follow the prescribed process” but is “fully prepared to independently institute proceedings at the Equality Court in terms of Section 20 of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act.”The party’s president, Herman Mashaba, posted: “The more I read what [Gayton McKenzie] says about the US, the angrier I get. We have been insulted and dehumanised for centuries, brutally so. It is not going to continue under a democratic government. Apology is not good enough.”Other political parties - including the EFF and ATM - have called for McKenzie’s dismissal from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Cabinet. The DA, in what appeared to be a reference to its dismissal of former MP Renaldo Gouws over a similar slur, said: “In past circumstances, the use of the K-word has had serious sanctions in South Africa, including dismissal, and we expect that will be the natural consequence here too.”McKenzie has since apologised, telling eNCA he is “truly sorry” for “insensitive, stupid and hurtful” posts. On X, he admitted: “I was stupid and a troll,” but maintained he “can’t be accused of racism” and would cooperate with any investigation.The Patriotic Alliance appears to be standing behind its leader. Co-founder Kenny Kunene posted on X: “I and all members of the PA know our president is not a racist and stand firmly behind him.”For now, the controversy shows no signs of fading. With formal complaints lodged, potential Equality Court proceedings on the horizon, and growing calls for McKenzie’s removal, the coming weeks will test both his political resilience and President Ramaphosa’s willingness to act.

Gayton McKenzie faces a firestorm over resurfaced racial slurs, sparking hypocrisy claims and cabinet dismissal calls

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