Is Oneida Cooper racist? Miss South Africa 2020 hopeful Oneida Cooper is facing the same fate as fellow contestant Bianca Schoombe after Twitter users uncovered some of her racist tweets from 2012 to 2013. The Miss SA contestant has tried to defend herself from racism accusations. #OneidaCooperMustFall started trending last night after the discovery of the Tweets.
Oneida Cooper defends racism accusations
https://twitter.com/SheshaMedia/status/1263432513193721856
Miss Orania 1st Princess once said: pic.twitter.com/6iLe3a34Ig
— Truth Finder (@TruthFinded) May 21, 2020
Oneida has tried to defend her words by quoting Steve Biko, while also indicating that his father is also a liberation hero. South Africans are taking non of that and they have accused her of using the race card whenever it suits her.
“Steve Biko’s testimony was in the Terrorism trial of S Cooper & 8 other Black Consciousness leaders. My dad (S Cooper) did 9 years in prison, 5 of which were in the same cell-block as Madiba. My 2018 swim from Robben island celebrated this and more. Steve Biko‘s definition of black encompasses what the legal definition in race-afflicted South Africa is: African, so-called Coloured and Indian, who were denied the vote until April 1994. ‘The Testimony of Steve Biko’ (2017) says it all,” Oneida posted on Twitter.
Oneida Cooper’s Miss SA speech
Cooper posted a promotional video of herself announcing her intention to participate in the Miss South Africa 2020 beauty pageant.
My name is Oneida Cooper I’m a seasoned 27 years old born and bred in Johannesburg. I’m a former South African swimmer and graduate in Clinical Psychology and Women Studies. I’m the owner of Coopers Aquatics and through my empathy and compassion with working with out youth, i founded Making Ways Together SA, a skills development non profit organisation that teaches underprivileged communities how to swim. I believe to uphold a role as influential as Miss South Africa transcends to more than just a title. I’m an active agent of change and i attempt to change people’s lives daily. We have seen the power of women uniting and standing together world over because when we stop competing against each other we complete each other.
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Read: Racist Miss South Africa 2020 Contestant Bianca Schoombee Exposed