It totally frustrates me that with every new year, more South Africans are accepting Jan Braai’s (real name Jan Schanell) idea to ”rebrand” the public holiday known as ‘National Heritage Day’ to ‘National Braai Day’. This apparently, is in recognition of the South African culinary tradition of holding informal backyard braais. This year marks a decade of this Braai Day initiative and the question at the top of my head is; whose heritage does Braai Day represent?
If you are going to rebrand any public holiday, it should resonate with South Africans from all their diverse backgrounds. So, does the National Heritage Council which endorsed this idea, honestly agree that Braai Day is a holistic representation of our South African heritage? The idea behind this was to contribute to strengthening the country through the act of nation building and social cohesion. I find it rather odd as Jan Braai himself mentioned that in some South African communities, braais are not that popular. I ask again, whose heritage does Braai Day represent?
There are other; more appropriate public holidays in which initiatives like Braai Day could have been incorporated. Of course, there is no need to rebrand them as every public holiday in South Africa is of great significance. Take ‘Day of Reconciliation’ for example, that is a national day which such an initiative, keeping in line with its vision and mission, could be incorporated without it having to lose its true meaning. That would make perfect sense because the 16th of December has become somewhat of a nationwide official turn up day. The emphasis here is having a day which is solely and exclusively dedicated to celebrating our heritage. Braai Day has taken away that exclusivity with the way it has been commercialised. It has gotten to a point whereby, to some people, the 24th of September is more of Braai Day than Heritage Day.
Without sounding like I am breastfeeding from a political train or like I’m trying to stir up racial conflicts, as a white South African, my assumption is that Jan Braai probably felt excluded on this particular holiday. Wherever their heritage stems from, it most likely has to do with colonialism, slavery or apartheid which is a heritage that can never be celebrated in the new South Africa. However, this cannot possibly be viewed as a suitable substitute which can accommodate all of us. Africans have a rich and proud heritage which they should be able to celebrate unapologetically. We may have different beliefs and cultural practices, but the essence of African culture is centred around family and Ubuntu which translates to “I am, because, you are”.
Amongst the various cultural diversities that exist within the African diaspora, Ubuntu has been the central theme that has kept many African communities together even in the most harsh times of our history and till this day, we identify with that. It is a principle which exists in practice 365 days a year. It does not only seek to bring people around the fire for a temporary chuckle. Therefore, it should not be rebranded or relegated. If you understand the whole concept of Ubuntu, you will know that it means that as South Africans, we are united in diversity hence we are referred to as the Rainbow Nation. In the spectrum of the colours of the rainbow, none is black or white. The question therefore is; what heritage can we, as a Rainbow Nation celebrate without making others feel like uninvited guests in their own country?
I believe that we should have been able to create a heritage which is inclusive regardless of your skin colour. Lest we forget, heritage is very dynamic, meaning that it changes with time. It can either be inherited or we can create our own heritage. At this point, many could be saying that Jan Braai created a heritage. But, braaing only forms as one of the many South African heritages. Your thinking capacity has to be flawed for you to think that you can take that one thing and present it as an ideal concept of South African heritage to the world. Those who have accepted it and allowed it to get this far are in the same boat. A lot people have got a one-dimensional definition of heritage which is donning our African clothing, but that is just the cherry on top. Our wildlife; and historical monuments such as Mapungubwe, are some of the things that set us apart from the rest of the world – among many other things.
The pertinent issue here is that we do not need to take the spotlight away from the beautiful heritage that we have created, and are still in the process of creating. There are many other things that we can now recognise as part of our heritage after 21 years of democracy irrespective of your ethnicity or race. When we dub our National Heritage Day as Braai Day, it’s like literally putting our heritage on fire. So, on National Heritage Day, let us proudly celebrate our Rainbow Nation. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against you braaing while you are at it.
Happy Heritage Day!
By Mamaili Mamaila
@Mamaili_M