What does it mean to be South African? Lessons from the Chidimma Adetshina saga

What does it mean to be South African?This is a question that has been haunting me in the wake of xenophobic – should we say afrophobic – online abuse directed at Miss South Africa hopeful Chidimma Adetshina.Despite being born in South Africa to a South African mother, her Nigerian surname has provoked a backlash that questions her right to represent South Africa in a beauty pageant.This reaction not only tarnishes our reputation as the “rainbow nation” but also challenges the very essence of what it means to be South African.South Africa has always been a melting pot of…