How wonderful it is to be a student, and to be so morally sure of your views about the world and how it should be run.
Kudos to Ntokozo
Qwabe, an Oxford student, who is leading
a campaign to remove a statue of Cecil Rhodes from Oriel College because Rhodes is no longer regarded in quite the same light as he was back in Victorian times.
A truly moral outlook!
Whilst there can be a theoretical rationale for revisionism (eg were the college to have had a statue of Hitler or Jimmy Savile, it would be expected that these statues should be removed), sometimes revisionism doesn't quite stack up especially when the revisionist has a few issues himself.
You see dear reader, Mr Qwabe is a Rhodes' scholar (ie his education is being funded in part by money derived from a fund set up by Cecil Rhodes). In 2014 the fund spent £8M on 89 scholars.
There's irony for you!
Unperturbed by this apparent "irony" Mr Qwabe, and members of the Rhodes Must Fall movement, have said that
paying homage to the British imperialist is at odds with the
university’s “inclusive culture”.
Mr Qwabe is in fact adamant that the money wasn't Rhodes' in the first place. As per the
Telegraph:
“Rhodes did not have a scholarship. It was never his money. All that he looted must absolutely be returned immediately."
Mr Qwabegoes goes on to argue that he is simply taking back “tiny fractions” of what Rhodes
looted during his time in Africa.
“I’m no beneficiary of Rhodes. I’m a beneficiary of the resources and labour of my people which Rhodes pillaged and slaved.”
Ah the certainty and moral high ground of youth!
Fortunately Mr Qwabe is still young enough not to be tainted by the "older person's" disease of hypocrisy.
