'The ideas of apartheid never really left Elon Musk' - William Shoki, Africa Is a Country

CapeTalk's Mike Wills (in for John Maytham on Afternoon Drive) is joined by William Shoki, Editor of Africa Is a Country.

Listen below:

He is the wealthiest person in the world and has the ear of the world's most powerful statesman.

Elon Musk is everywhere, writes William Shoki in his latest article for the New York Times.

The piece, titled 'Elon Musk Is South African. We Shouldn’t Forget It', explores the idea that Musk's worldview is inseparable from his background.

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The billionaire, born and raised in Pretoria, has emerged as a prominent figure in Trump's administration.

He has claimed recently that white South Africans have suffered due to 'racist ownership laws' and has criticised the post-apartheid government for what he describes as anti-white racism. 

These ideas originated somewhere, says Shoki, and the most plausible explanation is that they were formed during his childhood - a childhood spent in apartheid South Africa.

"One of his main preoccupations is peddling a narrative that not only white South Africans, but white people generally, internationally, are this besieged identity group."

- William Shoki, Editor - Africa Is a Country

"It's no accident that Musk grew up in South Africa, because the edifice of apartheid, under which he grew up, was based on exactly the same premise."

- William Shoki, Editor - Africa Is a Country

Musk's history matters, writes Shoki.

"It's very obvious that the ideas of apartheid never really left him."

- William Shoki, Editor - Africa Is a Country

Moreover, says Shoki, Musk is not alone.

He lists the likes of the rumoured favourite to take over as US ambassador to South Africa, Joel Pollak, as well as PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and venture capitalist David Oliver Sacks.

"There's been this surprising emergence over the last five years, of a coterie of people of Southern African origin who seem to wield a lot of influence in and around Trump's base.

- William Shoki, Editor - Africa Is a Country

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