The Unifying Power of Merit: New Poll Reveals What South Africans Really Believe About Race and Sport

In a nation where conversations about race are often fraught with tension and political posturing, a new poll points to a surprising and powerful consensus. According to soon-to-be-released research from the Institute of Race Relations (IRR), an overwhelming 92% of South Africans support merit-based national team selections and reject race-based quotas.

This isn’t the view of a small minority. The data, set for full release on 26 November, reveals near-identical support across the racial spectrum: 92% of Black South Africans, 92% of Coloured South Africans, 86% of Indian South Africans, and 93% of white South Africans.

Celebrating Heroes, Not Checking Boxes

The IRR has framed these findings around a powerful symbol of national unity: the Springboks. In social media posts, they highlighted players like Siya Kolisi, Bongi Mbonambi, and Pieter-Steph du Toit not as representatives of racial categories, but as “exemplars of exactly the merit” that the vast majority of citizens want to see.

Their argument is that the Springboks’ success stems from this very principlea team built on excellence that has, in turn, become a source of immense national pride that transcends racial lines. The think tank positions this as the direct opposite of a government approach it describes as focused on “ticking racial boxes.”

A Rebuttal to “Out of Touch” Policies

The publication of this data has sparked controversy, with one media outlet accusing the IRR of running a “political campaign.” The IRR has fiercely pushed back, stating that sharing “accurate, representative, and publicly relevant polling data” is not campaigning, but simply reporting what South Africans believe.

They argue that the findings offer a profound reason for hope, revealing a “fundamental decency across racial lines” that contradicts the image of a “seething cauldron of racial animosity.”

The underlying message is clear: the IRR believes these numbers show that ordinary South Africans are united in their desire for a society organized around merit and shared success, and that it is the political class that is “out of touch” with this unifying vision.

For a country often told its divisions are insurmountable, this poll suggests a different, more hopeful storyone where the desire to see the best represent the nation is a value that binds, rather than divides.

{Source: Citizen}

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