Ntokozo Qwabe (born 1991) is a South African

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

who was one of the founders of the

Rhodes Must Fall Rhodes Must Fall was a protest movement that began on 9 March 2015, originally directed against a statue at the University of Cape Town (UCT) that commemorates Cecil Rhodes. The campaign for the statue's removal received global attention and ...

campaign at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. His subsequent comments following the 2015 Paris attacks and behaviour towards a white waitress in South Africa were criticised in news and social media, leading to a petition for his removal from Oxford which was rejected by the university. He has rejected accusations of hypocrisy for receiving money from the Rhodes scholarship scheme, claiming that he is merely recovering wealth stolen from Africans by Rhodes during the colonial period.

Early life

Qwabe was born in 1991 to school caretaker Felokwakhe Qwabe and his wife Nomali in Oyaya,

Eshowe Eshowe is the oldest town of European settlement in Zululand, historically also known as Eziqwaqweni, Ekowe or kwaMondi. Eshowe's name is said to be inspired by the sound of wind blowing through the more than 4 km² of the indigenous Dlinza ...

, a rural area of

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

province in South Africa. He is one of 13 childrenFrom herding cattle in the dusty streets to receiving 34 distinctions at Oxford… this is an incredibly inspirational story of hope & determination!
Brent Lindeque, ''South Afri-Can'', 9 August 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2016. and the first of his family to attend university. He was forced to drop out of the

University of KwaZulu-Natal The University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) is a university with five campuses in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. It was formed on 1 January 2004 after the merger between the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville. ...

for financial reasons part way through his first degree and work as a cashier at a

Checkers Checkers (American English), also known as draughts (; British English), is a group of strategy board games for two players which involve diagonal moves of uniform game pieces and mandatory captures by jumping over opponent pieces. Checkers ...

store in Rossburgh in order to save for his tuition but returned in 2009 to complete his

bachelor of laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree, graduating ''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

'' in 2013. He subsequently completed a master's degree at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

. He joined the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar in 2014 where he completed a

bachelor of civil law Bachelor of Civil Law (abbreviated BCL, or B.C.L.; la, Baccalaureus Civilis Legis) is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. The BCL originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Camb ...

(BCL) degree in 2015 at

Keble College Keble College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to th ...

Rhodes Must Fall

In March 2015, Qwabe was one of the founders of the Rhodes Must Fall campaign which originated at the University of Cape Town in South Africa and was originally directed at a statue of

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853 – 26 March 1902) was a British mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. An ardent believer in British imperialism, Rhodes and his Br ...

that was seen by the campaign as a symbol of

European colonialism The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Turkish people, Turks, and the Arabs. Colonialism in the mode ...

and

white supremacy White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White su ...

. The campaign subsequently spread to the University of Oxford and internationally. Qwabe has rejected accusations of hypocrisy for receiving money from the Rhodes scholarship scheme, which is funded by a legacy from Cecil Rhodes, claiming that he is merely recovering wealth stolen from Africans by Rhodes during the colonial period.Ntokozo Qwabe: Student who accused Oxford of propping-up ‘existence of systemic racism’ says he is ‘tired’ of being asked why he goes to the university.
Aftab Ali, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 30 December 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2016.

Response to 2015 Paris attacks

Two days after the Paris Attacks of November 2015, Qwabe posted a message on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

saying he did not stand with France and calling for a ban on the

French Tricolour The national flag of France (french: link=no, drapeau français) is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue ( hoist side), white, and red. It is known to English speakers as the ''Tricolour'' (), although the flag of Ireland ...

flag at universities, describing it as a symbol of a state "that has for years terrorised – and continues to terrorise – innocent lives in the name of imperialism, colonialism, and other violent barbarities." In a subsequent interview with ''The Sunday Times'', Qwabe compared the French flag to the

Nazi swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...

Facebook comments and petition for removal from Oxford

In May 2016, Qwabe posted comments on Facebook about an incident when he was in a South African restaurant with a friend: His actions were widely criticised, including in South Africa where they were described as hypocritical and racist and not supported by an

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...

spokesman. A petition started by a South African in London to have Qwabe expelled from Oxford University or stripped of his Rhodes scholarship was rejected by the university on the grounds that Qwabe was entitled to free speech. Qwabe has stated that he has no regrets over the comments but that the events were not exactly as he described them on Facebook. A campaign to provide a tip for the waitress raised R150,000.

2016 protests at University of Cape Town

Qwabe has subsequently been involved in student protests at the University of Cape Town, commenting on Facebook about one incident in which he was accused of violence: The white student involved later confirmed that he had not been injured but described being racially abused by Qwabe and assaulted by another black student.‘UCT protests have nothing to do with #FeesMustFall‚’ says student attacked by stick-wielding activist.
Deneesha Pillay, ''Times Live'', 22 September 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Qwabe, Ntokozo Living people University of KwaZulu-Natal alumni South African Rhodes Scholars 1991 births People from Eshowe University of Cape Town alumni Alumni of Keble College, Oxford