SA hangs its head in shame as Time magazine highlights inequality

03 May 2019 - 11:21 By Cebelihle Bhengu

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SA is one of the most unequal countries in the world.
Image: ALON SKUY/TimesLIVE

Many South Africans are hanging their heads in shame after a picture depicting the chasm between the country's rich and poor made the cover of Time magazine.

The issue has not been officially released, but its cover is already doing the rounds on social media, sparking conversations about inequality and apartheid.

🙌🏾🙌🏼🙌🏻 Well done to CfA news fellow and @AfricanDRONEorg co-founder @UnequalScenes, whose #dronephotography has made the cover of @TIME magazine! The photo is part of a series visualising inequality across the globe from above. Read the article here: https://t.co/1n9bUra2Mk pic.twitter.com/GgSVfFwTCV
— Code For Africa (@Code4Africa) May 2, 2019

The cover picture is from photographer Johnny Miller's Unequal Scenes, a series of photographs from around the world which he took to highlight inequality and the plight of the poor. Countries such as India and Mexico also feature in the series.

Miller, who works with activists from all over the world, said work on Unequal Scenes started in 2016 in Cape Town, where he had studied the city, post-apartheid.

Here's a snapshot of the reactions on social media.

Hey look, South Africa made it on to the cover of TIME Magazine for... ah dammit. https://t.co/vFV5YJRRb8
— Jordan Collins (@jordcollins) May 3, 2019

“When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said "Let us pray." We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land.” -
Desmond Tutu
📷 Johnny Miller for Time Magazine #SouthAfrica #Time #GiveUsBackTheLand pic.twitter.com/4RZlyZPgbo
— Lerato Tshabalala (@LeratoTJ) May 2, 2019

Time Magazine’s front cover on the inequality crisis. This pic is South Africa - but there are many such photos now which reveal such stark divides across the world. We cannot now say that we had not seen. Will we act? pic.twitter.com/peF6kzS31w
— Ben Phillips (@benphillips76) May 2, 2019