The East London Equality Court yesterday heard a racism case involving a black sausage dog called Winnie Mandela.The complainant, Mantu Mbeka, approached the court after she claimed racial discrimination against her and other black students at Dynamic College.
In 2009, she was training as a paramedic and worked for Queenstown Metro Ambulances.
In court yesterday Mbeka told magistrate Valerie Gqiba that their lecturer Stefan Bredenkamp often victimised black students by giving them new names and not using their first names.
“He often said people from Metro were stupid and he would call us metro. He called us Brenda, Winnie Mandela, monkeys and I was called mamba,” she said.
Asked by her attorney Loyiso Godongwana what was offensive about being called Winnie Mandela, Mbeka said: “I felt insulted because at the academy there was a black dog called Winnie Mandela.”
She said the white students were called by their first names. All the students wore name tags.
Mbeka said if black students failed to give the correct answers to questions they would be punished.
“Mr Bredenkamp asked me about the use of an ECG machine and because he had not taught us about it I guessed the answer. Judging from his response I assumed I was wrong because he started swearing at me,” she said.
An ECG records the electrical activities of the heart.
On the same day Bredenkamp allegedly asked another student about the a defibrillator, which is used to resuscitate patients.
She said when the student did not know the correct answer Bredenkamp called her to the front where he wanted to use the machine on her. But she ran away.
In another alleged instance, a black student did not know the answer to a question and was strapped to a trauma board and had some water poured on his face.
Mbeka told the court that when the white student did not know the answer to a question she responded: “Stefan ek weet nie” (Stefan I do not know).
She also testified that when they went for practicals at the mortuary in West Bank Bredenkamp did not let them wear masks.
The woman further alleged that in the history of the academy, the only white person who ever failed was a woman from Port Elizabeth whose daughter was married to a black man.
The matter will resume on November 19. — siyab@dispatch.co.za
Equality Court hears Winnie, the dog, case
In 2009, she was training as a paramedic and worked for Queenstown Metro Ambulances.
In court yesterday Mbeka told magistrate Valerie Gqiba that their lecturer Stefan Bredenkamp often victimised black students by giving them new names and not using their first names.
“He often said people from Metro were stupid and he would call us metro. He called us Brenda, Winnie Mandela, monkeys and I was called mamba,” she said.
Asked by her attorney Loyiso Godongwana what was offensive about being called Winnie Mandela, Mbeka said: “I felt insulted because at the academy there was a black dog called Winnie Mandela.”
She said the white students were called by their first names. All the students wore name tags.
Mbeka said if black students failed to give the correct answers to questions they would be punished.
“Mr Bredenkamp asked me about the use of an ECG machine and because he had not taught us about it I guessed the answer. Judging from his response I assumed I was wrong because he started swearing at me,” she said.
An ECG records the electrical activities of the heart.
On the same day Bredenkamp allegedly asked another student about the a defibrillator, which is used to resuscitate patients.
She said when the student did not know the correct answer Bredenkamp called her to the front where he wanted to use the machine on her. But she ran away.
In another alleged instance, a black student did not know the answer to a question and was strapped to a trauma board and had some water poured on his face.
Mbeka told the court that when the white student did not know the answer to a question she responded: “Stefan ek weet nie” (Stefan I do not know).
She also testified that when they went for practicals at the mortuary in West Bank Bredenkamp did not let them wear masks.
The woman further alleged that in the history of the academy, the only white person who ever failed was a woman from Port Elizabeth whose daughter was married to a black man.
The matter will resume on November 19. — siyab@dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos