'You've got to disrupt things if you want change' — Why ‘First white Zulu queen’ shot her shot at coronation

The Gauteng woman who shot her shot at the reigning king of the Zulu nation, King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, on national television says she meant no disrespect by doing so. 

Avril, also known as Amelia, went viral this week after saying she wanted to be the first white Zulu queen.

Attending the ukungena esibayeni (the entering of the kraal ceremony) at KwaKhangelamankengane Royal Palace in Nongoma at the weekend, Avril said she was there in the hope that the king would take her as his wife.

“I heard the king is going to come here today, so I wondered maybe he’s looking for a wife. I don’t know if he’s going to watch this, then he must just know I am here. I want to be the first white queen of SA, the first white Zulu queen,” she told eNCA at the ceremony.

Avril's request received mixed reactions on social media, with many praising her for not “beating around the bush”.

Speaking on 5FM, Avril said she meant no disrespect by shooting her shot and claimed she was trying to change the trajectory of how things are normally done. 

“I think it’s easier to change the trajectory if you throw yourself into it. You've got to disrupt things a little bit if you want to change things,” she said. 

“King Misuzulu's coronation is a big change for the Zulu nation and I wanted to grab that narrative and ensure it's a change for our whole country. I want so badly for this to change SA and for it to be the start of the righting of all the wrongs.”

Avril said Amelia was an alter ego she used to spark a debate about race.

“It’s a wild idea and I think it has really captured the nation’s imagination because it certainly captured mine before I blurted it out on TV — this idea of a white woman who wants to be queen. I think there is this narrative that white people need to step away now and be very quiet because everything is just too tender and tense. 

“So it is obviously outrageous, this white woman coming up and wanting to claim what one might say could never belong to her. But of course, we can’t go back in history and we can’t undo what needs to be done. All we can do is move forward and try to figure out what reconciliation looks like,” she said.

On social media, many users were still tickled pink by Avril's idea of wanting to become the first white Zulu queen.

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