" I am a coloured?"

“SKIN” is a movie based on an extraordinary true story of a colored girl born to two Afrikaner South African parents during the apartheid era. In 1955 Abraham (Sam Neill) and Sannie Laing (Alice Krige) shocked the world when brought into the world a dark skinned baby with nappy hair named Sandra Laing. Shocked at the discovery, and unprepared for the battle ahead, the Laing family fought tooth and nail to have they daughter classified as a white person instead of a black person in order for her to receive better treatment.
Nothing could have prepared the family for the level of unfairness the white people showed to them. After being thrown out of school and isolated because of her skin colour, Sandra felt the weight of the world on her shoulders. She ran away from her own people into the arms of a black man who later became the father of two of her four children, and her husband.
Sandra, haunted by her past and struggling to define her sense of self, endured physical and mental abuse from the man who she thought was her warrior. She took off to a town where she now resides with her current husband and enjoys a new life that she doesn’t take for granted.
The movie, which stars British actor Sophie Okonedo, Sam Neil, Alice Kridge, Tony Kgoroge and Ella Ramangwane has been raising a big buzz and is already claiming titles under its belt including the Best Narrative Feature (AFI Dallas International Film Festivel 2009) and the winner of a Jury Award. This movie is a moving and very emotional window into South Africa’s past. (Jamati.com)

As I watched this preview to SKIN, I realized almost forgot it is based in the 1950's. This could have been shot in today's South Africa. Over the past few months, I have had several encounters with so called "coloreds" in South Africa and Swaziland. I have found the level of self hatred to be disturbingly high amongst people of color. I guess this is no shock considering the oppressive history of this region. When you ask them about there roots they simply and proudly state "I am a coloured". There also is a strong sense of pride amongst the coloured population. Many are very proud of the "lighter" side of their heritage if it is known. Some will proudly announce " I am Scottish".

Swaziland was a haven for many South Africans living under the apartheid regime. It was illegal to have sexual relationships with black women during this time. So many simply crossed the border into Swaziland to have sexual encounters with Swazi women. This largely resulted in many coloureds being produced and abandoned. Many Swazi coloureds were raised by their black "gogo" (grandmother) . After making these observations, I can't make a claim that the western world is any better. Sadly, I think there will always be color divide amongst Africans.