Elon Musk must have known exactly what he was doing when he clicked ‘tweet’ on his post.
Without a care for the repercussions, he said with his whole chest, “They are openly pushing for genocide of white people in South Africa. @CyrilRamaphosa, why do you say nothing?”
This was in response to Economic Freedom Front (EFF) leader Julius Malema chanting "Kill the Boer, Kill the Farmer" at the EFF's 10th-anniversary bash at FNB Stadium.
The comments and quote tweets that followed were enough to make one’s stomach drop or make you laugh out loud, depending on which side of the fence you are.
Not one to mince his words, Malema engaged Musk on the thread, basically saying, “You are talking sh*t”
Read more:- pic.twitter.com/Vl7bHn6mVm
— THE TRUTH PANTHER (@TheTruthPanther) August 1, 2023
The responses to Musk’s tweet not only showed the growing division within the country; it also highlighted the stark differences between the haves and have-nots.
While some white South Africans were backing Musk and his white genocide theories, others used it as an opportunity to dispel misinformation floating around on social media.
One such person was Janice (@Cthulhucachoo) who used the power of Twitter and her witty sense of humour to make fun of Musk and his white genocide junkies.
She crafted a fictional story so ridiculous, in a parallel universe, it could have been reality.
The premise for Janice’s tale was news that the EFF had invaded affluent Cape Town suburb, Camps Bay, and residents had barricaded themselves in the local shopping centre.
White genocide day 45: We're barricaded in Cape Union Mart. Tensions are high as we're down to one last bag of Chuckles. We can't leave because no Ubers are available. My daughter Horseleigh has missed 4 consecutive French lessons. We light a candle & pray to live another day.
— Janice (@Cthulhucachoo) August 4, 2023
Filled with blow-by-blow accounts of their survival, Janice’s ingenious use of satire gained her many fans.
Surprising fact, Janice has lived all over South Africa, but currently calls Durban home.
We've just received word that the Camps Bay battalion has fallen. I repeat, the Camps Bay battalion has fallen. They have spray painted UNJANI DUMELANG on the walls, which means "we are watching you", which is OBVIOUSLY a threat of extreme violence. God help us all. https://t.co/3X7VNPi33y
And then something interesting happened, Janice’s fictional characters started taking on a life of their own, namely her ‘daughter’ Horseleigh.
A number of my new followers have asked me to share more about my beautiful daughter Horseleigh. Fun fact, Hore (that's her nickname ❤️) was conceived in a barn after me and her father got frisky after drinking some mampoer we confiscated from the farm boys. pic.twitter.com/7yNYCDVhlN
— Janice (@Cthulhucachoo) August 9, 2023
I was curious to find out about the face behind the Twitter account, and reached out to Janice.
When asked where the idea came from to use satire as a vehicle to get her message across, she said, “I feel that our country has a horrific crime problem and that lying about it cheapens it.
“I have seen posts where people post images of complete strangers saying it was their parent who was murdered by an EFF member.
“Realistically speaking, upper class white people have the means to insulate themselves from true danger. It is this group who my tweets mock - those living in rich enclaves cosplaying as at-risk South Africans.”
Because of the nature of her tweets, we decided to keep her identity a secret, which led me to my next question: How does she deal with online trolls?
“Trolls are fundamentally unhappy people and are a lost cause. Now that Elon Musk is forcing them onto our time lines, I just block and forget. I'm not going to help them make money,” she explained.
But her tweets aren’t just making fun of privileged white people, Janice says it goes deeper than that. “I spent some time living in Cape Town and the racism is eye-opening.
“Johannesburg is not a perfect place, but it is more diverse. In Cape Town people would talk about me to my face in Afrikaans, assuming I didn't understand them. I have heard a LOT.”
As to the iteration of her fictional characters, Janice was taken by surprise by the public interest in them.
“To be honest, it was a throwaway comment.
“I had no idea people would take to her (Horseleigh). If people want more, I guess I could do that, but honestly, there are funnier accounts they could be following,” she mused.
IOL