LISTEN | ‘Diabetes made me do it’: woman who said black men were the problem, not pit bulls

TimesLIVE speaks exclusively to the woman allegedly behind a racist rant against black people in her defence of pit bulls

24 November 2022 - 18:11
subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now
The SAHRC is investigating a voice note in which a woman opposed to the banning of pit bulls launches a racist attack. Stock photo.
The SAHRC is investigating a voice note in which a woman opposed to the banning of pit bulls launches a racist attack. Stock photo.
Image: 123rf/Gloria Anderson

 

The SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is investigating a voice note in which a woman, opposing the banning of pit bulls, launched a scathing attack on black people in SA.  

The voice note began circulating on social media on Wednesday after it was leaked from a WhatsApp group called “Pit bulls be my voice”. 

TimesLIVE has identified her as Belinda Magor, 60, the owner of JCS Office Support, a bookkeeping company in Benoni. 

In her one-minute, seven-second rant, Magor said: “Estelle, I agree with you wholeheartedly. What I say is: ban the black man. They rape, they steal, they kill, worse than any pit bull could, and they get away with it. Ban those who are making the laws, ban Ekurhuleni, ban the black man. Get all the black women and cut out their uteruses and their ovaries [so] that they can't procreate, because they will all turn out the same because they are all the same.

“I’m very passionate about this. Ban them, kill them, shoot them, get rid of them because they are the problem — not pit bulls, not animals. Animals are beautiful, and they deserve a warm bed, food, love, attention and everything else. God created those animals. Who created the black man? Do you think God? I don’t think so.” 

When contacted, Magor denied issuing the voice note and said her name was Bella Walker. 

During the interview with TimesLIVE, Magor said she hadn’t admitted to recording the voice note, that she was not defending it but “having a conversation”.

“If we’re living in a democracy, why am I not allowed freedom of speech, hypothetically? Who can do anything about that if you have no proof, you only have screenshots, you don’t have the voice note? Whoever said that, that was terrible, and I do believe hypothetically that that person did apologise. I do believe, hypothetically, that that person carries their own shame.”

She added she had had a hard life.  “I have done what I need to do, and I am very sorry if it is unacceptable, but in all honesty nobody can judge me. We all have settings in our life that we are upset about. Look at the EFF: ‘Kill the Boers.’ What about the government when we were going through Covid that wouldn’t help white businesses? What about the packages the community made up for the poor people that were hijacked by the ANC and stolen because they didn’t want the white people to eat? What about that little girl in Bloemfontein that was starving and given a loaf of bread to eat and started eating it through the plastic during Covid? If this is a democracy, why are we not all treated fairly? Why are we not all treated the same?”

Asked about her comment on who created black people, Magor said: “Gosh, I have no idea. Lots of people say there was evolution, that there’s no God, they call it the Big Bang, I’m sure you’ve heard of that, so who knows? You can go on and on about the voice note as much as you want, you can do exactly what you want to, it really doesn’t faze me. Malema has never been called up for his hate speech, ever. Zuma has never been pulled up for that woman he raped, and I mean that was all over the news. Zuma has never sat in jail for all the wrong things he’s done — in all honesty, that’s the bigger picture.”

When questioned if she valued the lives of pit bulls over black people, Magor responded: “Honey, I value all animals over a human being. I have more time for animals than I have for human beings because life has taught me that human beings are deceitful, abusive, murderers, killers, rapists — and they do not care about the life they are ruining.”

I am actually very kind, specifically to black people. You would be surprised. I always help, always
Belinda Migor

She said she did not consider herself a racist. “I am actually very kind, specifically to black people. You would be surprised. I always help, always.” 

Asked why she did it, she blamed her diabetes. “I’m diabetic. When your sugar is out of whack, which happens quite often, you don’t think clearly, you can’t focus. There’s like a cloud over your mind. Unfortunately, I don’t get that quite often, I’m on insulin. If my sugar is out of whack, that is why I don’t do an office job, I cannot do it.” 

SAHRC commissioner Andre Gaum said the matter had been referred to its provincial office in Gauteng: “Prima facie, it is a horrific, shocking and appalling clip that indicates hate speech at the very least. The commission will therefore, after it has done its assessment, take the necessary steps that might include taking the matter to the equality court or holding an investigation. Under the circumstances, the equality court might be the preferred option.” 

On Thursday the Pit Bull Federation of SA said it had been made aware of the racist tirade and the screenshots. “As an organisation we are absolutely disgusted that this kind of narrative still exists in society,” it said.

“As we have stated previously, racism has no place in society. Race does not determine any person's capabilities as dog owners. Human dignity should always be at the centre of how any movement furthers its cause.” 


subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now

Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.