The Penuel Show, November 11, 2025
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Statistics as of March 13, 2026 at 12:07 PM EDT:
Total # of views -79, 618
Total # of comments - 1, 395
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Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post presents some biographical comments and other comments from the discussion thread for Penuel's 2025 YouTube podcast ""The Different Types Of Coloureds In South Africa".
The content of this post is presented for historical and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to +== for his research and production of this podcast. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD OF THIS PODCAST.
These comments were selected out of many more examples that could have been included in this compilation. They are presented in relative chronological order with numbers given for referencing purposes only.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VszDW8DiXjI
2025
1. @elroyswarts0044
"To be Coloured
is a culture, or ethnicity, but it does definitely have a racial component to
it as well. That's not to say that Coloureds are mono racial because Coloureds
are essentially mixed race people. Reducing it to just a culture takes away the
fact that it is actually mixed race people. The average Coloured person is
mixed with up to 6 different ethnicities and in some cases the mixing can go up
to 20 or more different ethnicities that can be traced to different parts of
the world. Coloureds are literally the most mixed group of people in the entire
world. This goes back all the way to when slaves were brought to the Cape
Colony from places like Malaysia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mauritius, India,
China, Myanmar, Angola, Mozambique, East Africa, etc. That's not even counting
the Colonizers which were also present in the Cape Colony at the time, which
are the British, Dutch, French, Portuguese, and the Germans. Then there are
also the indigenous Bantu groups in South Africa, as well as the various
Khoisan groups. All of these groups form the foundation of the gene pool of the
mixed race people of South Africa known as Coloureds.
Concerning the Khoisan people, they are not exactly Coloureds in my opinion. The Khoisan people are mono racial African people, but they do form an important part of the ancestry of most Coloureds. The overwhelming majority of Coloureds have Khoisan ancestry. It is important to make the distinction between the two groups. Although the Khoisan people were also classified as Coloured people at some point in our history, they are not actually mixed race people in the sense that their mixed race descendants are. They are mono racial African people who are indigenous to Southern Africa and are its original owners.
This leads me to my next point. There is a movement among Coloured people to embrace their Khoisan roots, which is a good thing to do. However, some want to take it to such an extreme that they deny other parts of their mixed ancestry and claim to be Khoisan people exclusively. As you have also alluded to, these people are petitioning the government to remove the Khoisan term and have all Coloureds reclassified simply as Khoisan people, even without their permission and without any kind of consultation. To me this is problematic for several reasons. First it denies that slavery ever happened in the Cape Colony and that some of the other non Khoisan ancestors of Coloureds were brought to the Cape Colony as slaves. Secondly, it seeks to bring division between Coloureds who have Khoisan ancestry and those who don't. If they ever were to succeed in having the term coloured removed, what will happen to the Coloureds who have no Khoisan ancestry and who have only known the Coloured identity for all of their lives? Will they be forced to pretend that they are also Khoisan or what exactly will happen to them? To be Coloured is not just a term that you can take away if and when you feel like it. It is an entire identity and culture that our people have built for centuries. How do you just decide to try to destroy that just because you don't like the term coloured or because you want to deny that you are mixed race and claim to be Khoisan? Thirdly, the people who are behind this movement have appointed themselves the spokespeople of all Coloureds. They want to decide for the rest of the Coloured population what they are supposed to be called. Most Coloureds see nothing wrong with the term coloured but these Khoisan pretenders want to decide for everyone that they should be offended by the term even when they are not. That is the problem I have with people in the Khoisan movement. I am fully aware of the fact that there are land ownership issues at play here, and I'm aware that Coloureds feel disenfranchised by how we been treated for the last 30 years, so they see this as the only kind of way to gain recognition and respect, but a denial of reality won't help either. As much as some Coloureds feel a close kind of spiritual connection to the Khoisan people, they are still mixed race descendants of the Khoisan people and denying other parts of themselves is simply being disingenuous.
To be clear, Coloureds are not Khoisan people and Khoisan people are not Coloureds, but the Coloured community of South Africa carry more Khoisan genes than any other group in South Africa. This information is freely available on Google and is based on scientific evidence. If you were to go to the Northern Cape today you would still find actual Khoisan people living there in Coloured neighborhoods. Some of them still live in the bushes and live the way they used to live back in the day. In some cases in that Province you can't even tell the difference between who is Coloured and who is Khoisan because the Coloureds in that Province have so many genes from the Khoisan people. You won't find this in any part of the country except for the Northern Cape.
As for the Cape Malays, in my opinion, they are also mixed race people. In the same way that those who push the Khoisan movement have decided to take the Khoisan thing and run with it, they have also decided to take the Malaysian thing and run with it, to where over time they have managed to form an entire subculture out of it. The whole thing could just as easily have been Cape Indonesian, or Cape Madagascan, etc.
As for the term Cape Coloured, I believe that it's just a term that people came up with to other themselves away from Coloureds in other parts of the country. Many Coloureds in the Western Cape have a superiority complex and view themselves as the original Coloureds and therefore better than everybody else. Whenever you hear someone referring to themselves as the "real Coloureds" or the "true Coloureds" you can be certain that they are Coloured people from the Cape Town, also known as Cape Coloureds.
Though Coloureds are essentially mixed race people, there is more to being Coloured than just being mixed. Coloureds are a very specific ethnic group with a very specific culture and a very specific history. If you are not part of that you are not Coloured even though you may also be mixed. Trevor Noah is the most famous example of someone who may be mixed race but not necessarily Coloured. Trevor Noah is just a random biracial guy. Also, many people claim that light skinned or mixed race looking black people from places like America become Coloured or are classified as Coloured when they come to South Africa. That is not exactly true. They are just black Americans. No one in South Africa insists that any black American coming to South Africa is Coloured or calls themselves Coloured. South Africans have more sense than to do something like that.
As for the Afrikaans language, it is not only spoken by Coloureds in the Western Cape. Every Province in South Africa has multiple Coloured neighborhoods. In the Gauteng Province alone I can't count about 20 and even then I'm sure that there are some that I'm not even aware of. The overwhelming majority of these Coloureds speak Afrikaans. It is not exclusive to the Western Cape.
Coloureds are multi generationally mixed people but they are mono cultural. Coloured culture is the same everywhere, but with different variations that are based on region. I always say that Coloureds culture is like having different shades of the same colour.
As for people like Warras and those who have a disdain for Coloured identity and culture, I don't have a problem with them wanting to be something else and not wanting to be Coloured. I can respect that. At the same time, since they insist that they are not Coloured, why then do they turn around and speak to Coloured issues? Why do they involve themselves in our affairs and why do they speak on our behalf when they are not us? Why not just mind their own business and leave us alone?
Lastly, most Coloureds see nothing wrong with the term "coloured." People who reject the term are mostly woke Coloureds who will give you all kinds of nonsensical reasons as to why the term coloured is offensive to them, and therefore it should be offensive to everyone else too. These people are black identified and tend to politically align with black supremacist kind of political parties like the EFF and others. The biggest objective to the term coloured is that it came from the Colonizers which is ironic because the very same people who reject the term coloured because it came from the Colonizers call themselves black which is also a term that came from the Colonizers. Africans historically never viewed themselves as black. They identified by their tribal names. Colonizers introduced the term black as a way to put all darker skinned Africans under one umbrella, to strip them of their tribal identities, and dehumanize them in the process. Mostly black Americans have somehow managed to turn the term black into a positive, and since they themselves were stripped of their tribal identities they use the term black as a tribal descriptor, but it doesn't mean that the term was created with good intentions because originally it was meant as a pejorative.
Coloured PROUDLY and UNAPOLOGETICALLY."
**
Reply
2. @vickykgoete3161
"I agree with everything you said except
on the biracial matter. If you agree that coloured is also a race as much as
it a culture than why do you still deny biracials like Trevor Noah from
being a coloured?
Trevor is a coloured by race not
culture. Biracial people are recognized as coloured in Southern Africa
precisely because coloured is a racial classification as well as a culture. You
say South Africans aren't dumb enough to call Americans who come to SA coloured
however we do call them coloured. Not because we are dumb but because in SA
mixed people have their own racial classification called coloured. It refers to
their phenotype n the fact that they have more than 1 race in them only. To
want to gate keep the race coloured for the culturally coloured people only is
not only impossible but its wrong because race doesn't give a damn about your
shared history or culture. I put it to you that coloured is both a race and a
culture . you and biracial people are coloured by race in this country. Same
way when Trevor went to America and they called him black because of thier way
of defining race is the same way when Drake comes to SA we should proudly call
him coloured because in our country mixed people have their own racial
classification. I think we should make a distinction between coloured the race
and coloured the culture. These are two separate meanings."
**
3. @rowanforgus
"Thanks Penuel very informative, and well researched
video. One thing I want to add as a
Coloured person i feel wasn’t quite touched on in the video is the variation
among Coloured people even within the same family. For example, I have 2 siblings, both
brothers, and my older brother could pass for an Indonesian or a Malaysian he
has straight black hair with the same shade of skin colour as yourself. Myself and my younger brother both have blue
eyes and olive skin and people often mistake us for either white or
Anglo-Indian. We all have the same
mother and father. I also have cousins
where in one family the oldest of 3 siblings looks completely like a white
person, he middle brother looks African with Afro hair and dark brown skin and
the youngest kind of looks mixed like Sho Madjozi. Again, all 3 share the same mother and
father. The mother looks kind of
Malaysian or Indian and the father looks like he could have Xhosa
ancestry. So, if we got rid of the
classification “Coloured”, how would this work in cases like this? My observation is my situation and the
situation of these cousins of mine is not uncommon within the Coloured
community. So would families be split
into different racial groups if the term “Coloured” was abolished? Maybe you could cover this aspect of the
Coloured community (i.e members of the same family with the same parents
looking racially different to each other) in a future video?"
**
Reply
4. @EdenBloemstein, 2026
"I agree 100 percent! My family is exactly the same. Some can
pass for Indian, indonisian, white etc none of us look the same😂
but we all identify racially and culturally as coloured"
**
Reply
5. @pamelafebruary8509, 2026
"To Pen's point; it's not about the look, it's the culture!"
**
6. @thiboznjabu64
"There is a 3rd category of whites in SA that you did not
mention ! The Lebanese and Albanians (like
Mike Sham) , Portuguese , Italian , Jews and Eastern European (after
1994) ..who mostly landed here after WW2
. They a fabric into the Black culture in SA ...AND even creating more subsets
of 'coloureds' in the SA demographics
found in townships and villages but
offsprings fully self identified as the black grand maternal culture/race
in that region . And of course 'coloureds' in the hinterland ( from Boer
and farmworkers- whether Pedi , Tswana , Sotho , etc) . Also far east Asians
,-the Chinese/Japanese adding to the racial mix who lived amongst blacks (and
conceiving children in townships/villages ) running butcheries , stores ,etc .
I am of one such , a SAN Blackman - of Portuguese (great grand father of PATERNAL) and German (great grand father of
MATERNAL) ancestry and heritage but
choose and remain a Blackman!"
**
7. @ricardosmallberg678
"As for myself my great Grandfather was black african
american...married to a Portugese woman ....my mother side had the same type of
mix up...but there are Indian blood involved...coloreds diversity so complex"
**
Reply
8. @UppityColoured
"So they were biracial. Like many of my family members.
But besides that... We also have African American &
coloured, White & coloured, African & coloured, Indian & coloured
and of course coloured & coloured in our family (this is in MY household).
And we all get along mighty fine. Zero issues whatsover."
**
Reply
9. @UppityColoured
"With all the mixing, with coloured and coloured alone, there
are a myriad of phenotypes. Add the other mixes to the mix... Many more
variants are at play. And it's a beautiful thing!"
**
10. @NinohBrown
"Are the likes of Walter Sisulu, Lindiwe Sisulu even
classified as Coloured?
I for one have a problem with classifying people who are not part of the culture and communities as part of the broader community.
Lets not forget Race is used for economic opportunities, would it be fair to the coloured communities is the likes of Sizwe Mpofu, Trevor Noah or Sho Madjozi got economic opportunities under 'Coloured' even though they have little association with the community?
Great podcast/conversation Penuel, only thing i
would have like you to touch on is the
Economic part. Race is not natural its man made and it was made to determine
who gets which opportunities"
**
11. @vickykgoete3161
"To say coloured people are a mixure of other races but not a
race would be undermining ourselves as South Africans. It would be undermining
our unique laws and stance on the matter because we termed a concept for
"mixture of different races" in Southern Africa. We called it
coloured. We literally created a new race other than black or white where mixed
people have a separate identity for themselves. Yes it comes from dark, racist roots, well so does every other
race. Biracial and Multiracial people found a home in having their own racial
category in this country because indeed looking mixed has a separate experience
so Penuel South Africa created a racial classification for mixed ppl and till
this day we use coloured to define a race. Because we see mixed ppl on the
streets daily and we say "look at that coloured girl" Do we know her
culture? No. Do we know her language ? No but she's mixed therefore she is
coloured because of her phenotype.
You gave us examples of different racial and cultural mixes
across Southern Africa. They speak different languages, they have different
religions, they come from different areas, they are mixed with different mixes
BUT DO YOU KNOW THE ONLY THING THEY HAVE IN COMMON? Its that they are MIXED.
That mixture, whatever kind it is. Is called Coloured in Southern Africa. Its a
racial classification for mixed people. Now these people developed a rich
culture and that culture is also called coloured. Coloured is both a race and a
culture."
**
Reply
12. @KAMOYA17, 2026
"Not all Coloured people are mixed. Some took to the
classification for better opportunities under Apartheid. There are many natives
who are made up of indigenous people (eg: Khwe Xam) who were not allowed to
speak their language and ended up being classified as Coloured but, they are
not mixed."
**
13. @elizabethandrsu369
"koi & San are not coloureds you are right."
**
Reply
14. @TheBertDJ
"
@elizabethandrsu369 they are not, but were however lumped under the broader
Coloured group by means of the Population Registration Act of 1950. I suggest
you read up about the act and how it impacted the Khoe and San peoples"
**
Reply
15. @mm53683
"
@elizabethandrsu369 Why do people keep repeating this like a broken tape
recorder, it's boring now😭🤣🤣🤣 Do the rest of
South Africa not understand or know that human beings are made up of DNA
strands and within that DNA strands there's something called ancestry lineage
and within those ancestry lineage, the Khoi Khoi and San people shares the same
DNA strands with mixed Coloured people. It's called being ancestors. Hope this
helps and your mind grasps because repeating this simple concept to big grown
people is truly foolish. We all weren't good at Biology but I think this is
actually common sense or maybe you should learn the history of your country of
all corners of it,without the edited apartheid and ANC version"
**
Reply
16. @StoryTeller-py8ns
"Listening is a skill"
**
Reply
17. @vickykgoete3161
"The only people calling Khoi-san people coloureds are coloured
people. So instead of Khoi-san protesting at the Union Building they must go
protest in Cape Town to Coloured people and tell them to Stop referring to Khoi-San
as coloureds. The coloureds, some of them, come from the Khoi not the other way
around."
**
Reply
18. @LeeOE051
"
@vickykgoete3161 Facts, Marr relax hlm🙏"
**
19. @TheBertDJ
"The Khoe and San people were lumped
under the broader Coloured group by the Apartheid government under the
Population Registration Act of 1950."
**
Reply
20. @mm53683
"
@TheBertDJ It's 2025 and many across South Africa still don't know this, as if
we're making up our own stories to say this. That's why they think that some of
the descendants of Khoisan protesting at the union building and Cape Town are
ridiculous because they don't even know their own country's constitution but
fast to comment.It's embarrassing to see, even people across the globe know
more about South African and Khoisan history than most people in these comments"
**
21. @Isla33-n2k
"Yeah I don't mind being called black or
coloured, but Im definitely not white. Im tan skinned with long curly hair.
When I studied in the Netherlands so
many spanish people came up to me and instantly spoke spanish 🤣 kaanti
I'm afrikaans"
**
Reply
22. @mm53683
"
@Isla33-n2k I love that about us, what some people may feel is an offence is
actually interesting to hear other people's perspective as a South African,
best experience, multi-ethnic is a great blessing🙏😁My uncle was
also told in Kuwait that he's Mexican, he can't be South African🤭🤣🤣🤣
We can look like any other ethnicity and as well as connect with any ethnicity,
it's beautiful and a gift from God🙏 It was normalised like in America
because everyone shares in the Black American culture there but here it's not
the case, we have completely different social nuances and traditions even
through we live cross culturally, most of us just grew up inter religiously not
culturally until adulthood came. The tribalism in South Africa won't allow for
integration, it seems it'll always be a one-sided effort. Many people in this
country aren't the most adaptive and agile. It's not the same as American, to
honour my African ancestry, I feel its best to be called African that allows
not to erase the existence of the rest of me in my multi-ethnic self or what my
other enslaved ancestors endured after being brought from parts of Asia and
other parts of Africa too. "
**
23. @andrewkock2537
"I personally would like to be
acknowledged as a black person I have Griekwa heritage bloodline"
**
24. @bigl3885
"I'm a coloured gent from Cape Town, my
mum is a Cape coloured woman with fair skin, but my dad is technically black
with an English name, and Afrikaner surname. He doesn't speak any nguni
language, only Afrikaans and English, yet his brother, sister and mom spoke
Xhosa. This is the best breakdown I've ever seen. I've learnt a lot from this
that I didn't know... I also found that a town in the Garden route called
Mossel Bay has coloureds with Portuguese ancestry.
You forgot to mention that during
Apartheid a lot of black African people took European surnames to get better
treatment, or benefits that coloureds got back then, and their children and
grandchildren still consider themselves coloured today.
Lastly, as far as stats go, I think the
percentages are off, because a lot of coloured people, especially in Gauteng
and Eastern Cape see themselves as black, so the true number could be as high
as 11%"
**
25. @joyelias6975
"This is a very good breakdown of the
coloured community in South Africa. I personally had friends from most of these
groups. I know this is beyond the scope of your video, but for interest sake I
thought I would comment that the term coloured as a label for mixed race people
is not unique to South Africa, but it is widely used in Southern Africa
particularly the English speaking countries and Namibia.
It is used in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia, and though there aren't many in Botswana it is still used there too. Also, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, and Angola all have a large mixed race community.
Moreover, in former British colonies like Zim, Zambia, and Malawi the coloureds are grouped into British coloureds, Asian/Indian coloureds, and Continental/European coloureds (Portuguese and Spanish). There is now an emerging subset known as Chinese coloureds because many Chinese men are settling in these countries.
I say this as a mixed race person who grew up in South Africa, but I'm from Malawi, and I have traveled to several Southern African countries.
Awe, mase kind."
**
26. @ProjectSisters2021
"Our Family Story: A Reflection of the Coloured Community’s
Diversity
I was born in the Western Cape in 1966, and my family’s
story is a real example of how beautifully diverse the Coloured community is in
South Africa.
My father’s father had Khoi roots and his mother was of
German descent. My mother, born in Cape Town, was the daughter of a white
father and a Coloured mother with Scandinavian ancestry. So from both sides,
our heritage carries a mix of Khoi, European, and Coloured influences — all
meeting here in the Western Cape.
That mix shows clearly in our family. Out of six brothers,
four have blue eyes and very fair skin, two look Italian, and one has darker
features. My older sister has Japanese-like features, while my twin and I are
often told we look Spanish or sometimes even Chinese. Yet we are all from the
same mother and father.
Because of our background, we were registered as Cape Malay,
but our family represents so much more than one label. Our roots connect to the
Khoi, European, and Asian lines that built the Coloured identity over
generations.
And beyond just appearance — we’ve also developed our own
culture. We may share history with other Coloured families, but our way of
speaking, our food, our traditions, and even how we treat people reflect our
unique blend. We were raised with respect, pride, and a deep appreciation for
every part of our heritage.
So yes — we are part of the Coloured community, but we also
have our own family culture within it. That’s what makes our community so
special: no two families are exactly the same, yet we all belong to this
colourful, complex, and beautiful story of South Africa.
I’m sharing my story because I want people to see that being
Coloured isn’t about looking one way or fitting into one box — it’s about where
we come from, how we live, and the love and pride we carry for who we are."
**
27.
"It's so interesting. In my family I have all kinds of
coloureds. Cape Malay, Griqua, Cape coloured, other coloured, biracials,
multiracials, those who follow the Muslim religion, Christian religion, those
who turned Muslim, those who turned Christian... And so on and so forth. The
whole lot. We're EXTREMELY mixed."
**
28. @jesseabrahams9683
"As a coloured, I wanna thank you for this video man! This
must have taken a lot of courage to decide to make and eventually put this out!
Good on you Pen!
Many South Africans unaware of how diverse and racially mixed coloured people are.
The cape is a lot more mixed then you've touched on but its a really good start. A lesser known fact is the migration from St Helena Islands, Mauritius and Madagascar. With the abolishment of slavery these places were used to hold previously enslaved peoples. However it also had a mixed creole community (european and locals mix) and the later migration of both Creole and previously enslaved to the Cape.
Places around ports in Cape Town and Durban also had German, English, Scottish and Irish apart from the more commonly known Dutch, French, Portuguese and Spanish."
**
29. @tombimashri8149
"Coloureds vome in different Colour shades of skin nd
different hair textures after all we vome from Black/white, Infian, Arab,
Dutch, Portugues infact the zunited Nations in our different colour shades hair
textures but we are ONE THE SAME PEOPLE UNFER ONE UMBRELLA GUYS."
**
30. @RoyalPriesthoodd
"As a 1st Gen or OG "coloured" white mom and black
dad... born in 92 in Zimbabwe.. but1 grandma is a Lottering.. so i empathise
with ALL coloureds in Zim , Zambia , SA , Namibia, Bots and beyond.
it was difficult growing up not being fully accepted in All communities white ,black or coloured with a "black" name yet living with a white mom...
School , sports and dating present many challenges.. black girls say youre a player or i thought you didnt date black girls , coloureds ask why is your name Shona and your hair nappy???
Before you know it you s-curl and relax your hair, gel it , get a nickname and start dorping and spinning cars ... because atleast in this community.. we look alike physically...
but when you visit uGogo take out the earrings, gel and pull up your jeans also speak properly..
its hard to be yourself when you constantly get judged from all angles... but now having lived in NZ , Uk , Australia.. its not as bad either your black or white...
Also after turning to Christ and realise im blessed to have
experienced all commumities including Indian through my step dad. we all bleed
red"
**
31. @craigarendse8417
"Thanks for the video, Pen it really gives people something
to think about. I can already see many will comment without truly reflecting on
the questions you’ve raised.
Every community has its challenges, especially in a country where people of colour were systematically pushed into poverty. That poverty can bring out the worst in people, but it doesn’t define who we are.
In the Coloured community, many of our natural leaders are thriving in the corporate world and focusing on their families which is understandable. There are countless successful Coloured professionals across the Western, Northern, and Eastern Cape, yet we remain divided because those who claim to represent us often don’t reflect our real values or lived experiences.
Leaders like Gayton McKenzie, Fadiel Adams, and the NCC and the Khoi San adjacent groups don’t speak for all of us. What we need are genuine role models from our professional, business, and faith based communities people who reflect integrity, humility, and strength.
Patricia de Lille is a great example: a confident, dignified woman who mirrors the Cape Coloured mothers many of us grew up around women of faith, strong moral values, and quiet resilience. Even though I don’t agree with her politics
And when it comes to identity it’s not as simple as saying we’re all black. How is black even defined? We can’t just say nonwhite equals black that ignores the complexity of who we are. Coloured DNA is among the most diverse in the world; one person might look white but simply carry more European or Khoi ancestry, while another might show more African or Malay heritage.
That’s why we call ourselves Coloured not out of division,
but because it reflects our intergenerational heritage. We’re not “mixed” from
one generation; even our grandparents and great-grandparents were Coloured. Our
diversity runs deep"
**
32. @bigl3885
"19:47 I feel like coloureds in Kokstad, KZN has their own
unique history that's different from the rest of KZN. They're probably the only
coloureds who speak Afrikaans in that province."
**
33. @elroyswarts0044
"As a Coloured person I thank you for your kind words Penuel.
Most of us see nothing wrong with just being Coloured and we see nothing wrong
with the term. What we hate is people constantly trying to police our identity
and labelling us anti black for not ticking the black box and being proud of
our mixed race identity. Our history is filled with slavery, forced family
separation, and pain, but inspite of it all of the challenges that we had to
face our people were able to overcome, establish a brand new identity, and
build a rich culture that reflects everything that we are as a people. What we
want is to be acknowledged as African just like everybody else, and we want to
be treated just like everybody else. Equal access to opportunity and respect.
Not privilege or special treatment. That's about it."
**
Reply
34. @ZulphaN, 2026
"👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
beautifully said. We only want to be
treated equally and not like 3rd class citizens in our own country."
**
35. @TheKefmoth
"I’m black. Husband is coloured.
My kids… one identifies as coloured. The other as black. Interestingly, the darker one identities as coloured and the lighter one as black.
To me they are black.
Especially when sun kissed… the melanine cannot
be denied when the sun comes."
**
36. @smcptrsa
"Im proudly coloured and im not offended if people call me
that, its just a way to identify, im not black or white, im what people call
cape malay coloured but in my family tree i have Indian, white European, cape
malay coloured, coloured and now xhosa family through my siblings marriage so i
have no time for racism, i respect all races and tribes, its so mixed in my
family, im Muslim and my aunts Christian and married to a pastor, i get along
with everyone, we all just vibe when we're together, we just one family."
**
Reply
37. @adhdmed
"You are absolutely right. Coloured is a Culture, Not a Race."
**
Reply
38. @Jeff_Hayes26
"Its a race"
**
Reply
39. @LINLYN81, 2026
"@Jeff_Hayes26 It is not a race. My mother is half German
and her mother was half Xhosa/ Half Khoi. My father is of Sotho, British, Khoi
and Malay origin. These two people are not the same race, the only genetics
they share is Khoi."
**
Reply
40. @mm53683
"Been saying that, that's why our whole constitution is full
of errors. Categorising Coloured people by their culture and categorising black
South Africans by their continental identifier, African, categorising Biracial
people as Coloured when that's not even their culture. It's messed up and the
government is causing havoc refusing to rectify.this should be the next
national protest"
**
Reply
41. @forgoogletotrack7181, 2026
"We should be defined socially and politically by our tribal
affiliation and the community culture we were born into, raised in and continue
to live in.
In Cape Town I grew up with Coloureds dark as night and
white as milk, yet I identified with them because our culture was the same, not
our DNA."
****
2026
42. @coryhenri480
"Excellent presentation,Sir! Unfortunately, our black ancestry is largely unrecorded, likely due to the "side chick/concubine" syndrome, often hidden behind the hedges a few hundred meters from the homestead. I have traced my maternal lineage to Ogle and Green of the 1820 settlers, and my paternal lineage (Pillay) to a village in India. Sadly, my black lineage is lost. Thanks once again for an excellent presentation on the topic"
**
43. @ruwaynekock4983
"Listening to this conversation truly moved me. It sparked
feelings of gratitude, pride, some discomfort, and reflection. As someone
officially classified as ‘Coloured’ but who also identifies as Black, I see
parts of my own story reflected in what you’ve shared. You’re absolutely right
that “Coloured” is not a race, and you’re exploring an important nuance in
understanding the complexity behind that label. I want to make it clear:
sometimes race, ethnicity, and culture get mixed up, which can cause confusion.
“Coloured” is an ethnicity that includes many different cultures—not just a
race or a single culture. Recognising this distinction is important because it
influences how people see themselves and how they are recognised in our
country. Still, I want to acknowledge your bravery in addressing this very
sensitive topic of identity in South Africa. I am both triggered and grateful.
Triggered by conceptual shortcuts and by the old patterns of being narrated
from the outside. Grateful that a sensitive conversation is happening in the
open and that people are responding with honesty. Many of us carry both pride
and pain from our histories. The conversations happening show that people long
for a deeper understanding. Thank you for sparking this vital dialogue. Let’s
keep building on it, welcoming more voices, including scholars, elders, and
those navigating these identities in complex ways, sharing more history, and
striving for clearer understanding."
44.
"Thank you for this excellent video! I have learned so much
and I agree with all you have said. Now I have an understanding and insight
that I did not have before, especially with regards to why some people embrace
the term Coloured and others detest it. But South Africa and the world need to
see and hear more about this culture, its diversity and all its stories and
peoples"
**
45. @mphomapoulo5026
"The whole idea of Khalads being referred to as a race is
based on how white South Africans lied that Khalads are predominantly Khoisan
(a lie), and also that Khoisan are not African (another lie) let alone Bantu.
Every time you hear anything about the Khoisan, they are never referred to as
African nor Bantu. The divide and conquer strategy is still very much alive
despite the perpetrators of such, not being in power anymore!"
Reply
46. @alisterdirector1475
"
**
47. @filomenagoncalves5255
"Am colored from
angola 🇦🇴
my mother was a mix of white portugues and african black woman so
my was dad mix of indian and black and arab ,now i live
in south africa and because of my light skin many see me as a white person ,but
my hair is curly but i see my self as a colored where in angola am seen as a
mulato -mistico -colored ,am proud of my heritage"
**
48. @astronomers
"Coloured people in South Africa are not the same as mixed
race. Trevor Noah is mixed race, he’s not Coloured. While we may have mixed
ancestry, Coloured identity is a unique culture with deep roots that existed
long before apartheid gave it a name.
Calling us mixed race overlooks our shared heritage, language, and identity. In fact, Coloured people reflect what the world could look like beyond racism we’re diverse in appearance but united in culture.
That’s why I wish Tyler had stood up for that identity,
instead of defaulting to an American view that doesn’t quite apply to us"
-snip-
“Tyler” refers to the South African Grammy award winning singer named "Tyla".
**
49. @reveniaabrahams7449
"Thanks for mentioning the Maasbiekers. I do not
refer to myself as a coloured because it is a category that was created by the
apartheid state to divide and conquer people. I am a South African of mixed
origin. My mother was first-generation mixed race from a German father and a
Maasbieker mother. My father's heritage is Khoisan, Dutch, and Asian"
**
50. @marcelholster8265
"I'm only halfway through this very
interesting and enlightening post, but would be interesting to hear your views
on the St Helenian ( British Territory of St Helena). My mother often spoke of
her grandmother that was of St Helenian descent. I identify as coloured with
German/ St Helenian ancestry."
**
51. @robingeorge7151
"Pen, great discussion. I'm a coloured from Cape Town with
mixed ancestry from German missionaries, Jamaica, India and from the indigenous
Khoi and the San (my grandpa). I consider myself as 100% South African as when
I travel outside of the country I am very aware of it. Some significant
coloured people you can include: Harold Cressy (first person of colour to
obtain a degree from UCT/ education activist), Abdullah Abdurahman (first
person of colour in South Africa elected to public office and a doctor) and
Cissie Gool (first woman of colour to be elected to public office in South
Africa a lawyer). There's many more I can mention"
**
52. @shereendevilliers7711
"My bloodline as a coloured person my
mother’s father was black Zambian her mother Khoi. My father’s dad is Somalian
from Zanzibar his mother Malaysian/Dutch mix slaves of the Island of St
Helena.My birth certificate says Cape Malay because my fathers Muslim
background.
I have a friend who is mix
Indian/Coloured and her grandmother was one of the people who hid Mandela and
Sisulu(who is mix race himself) in their house in a township when they were on
the run from the police.
We have this diverse background and were
so involved during the struggle but today seem to be a nuisance to many but not
to Jesus 🙌🏾"
**
53. @markwhiting7347
"My grandfather on my mother's side was
white my grandmother's Khoi when he
married my grandmother his family wrote him off the same happened to my fathers
side ."
**
54. @BeetleCrazy
"I personally feel that I need to work
harder at all things and constantly need to justy my existance as a coloured
person born in Cape Town. We just want to be treated equally, be given
opportunities and to be considered on merit, nothing more. Not looking for any
favours, just to be treated equally. Salute to people like Trevor Manuel,
Jonathan Butler, Ashley Kriel, Gorrie November, Allan Boesak, Abdullah Ibrahim,
DJ Ready D... to mention a few. Thanks for shining a light on the coloured
discussion."
**
55. @Zimbabe220
"So good! I love this. As a Ndebele
Coloured (pat) mixed with and Shona coloured (mat) plus my paternal granny's
father was a zulu coloured/indian man that grew up in the diaspora. I love that you spoke exactly to my whole
identity. Through oral history in my family I knew this broadly as a coloured
person but I certainly learned so much today . Because truth be said, we always
heard that we have a white relative that had children with a Ndebele woman and
that's how your great granny came to be she was one of 26 children etc.. and I
always thought, who were these guys?! 😂
- anyways thanks for the deeper understanding. I feel like I know the history
part of these family stories better. And I love the history part of it. I love
being coloured. I love the diversity in my lineage.
And the culture aspect is spot on. We are a culture. We even have our own accents when we speak English and mix the English with the indigenous languages having had native speakers in the home. It's a unique culture and it should be embraced."
THIS BOOK WRITTEN BY MY LATE MOM AGNES
RORKE LOTTERING WHICH WILL BE MADE INTO A MOVIE COMING SOON"
**
57. @glenjoseph3756
"I’m a Namibian male born in the Eastern Cape as a “Cape
coloured” and could identify with the conversation regarding the cultural
differences and how it affects and influences us as people groups. Well put
together."
**
58. @esmevanheerden9449
"There are some coloured families with half of the relatives
being white."
**
59. @twrho
"Hate the term colored I'm mixed race very interesting learnt
a lot❤"
**
Reply
60. @julianduplessis3334
"@twrho I wonder who came up with the term as I agree it's
terrible. However, today many Coloureds accept it and will find it very hard to
disassociate them from the term"
**
61. @sharonsmart1176
"Wow, it's such a
great topic. On my birth certificate ..Cape Colored being born to 2 Mix
race parents. I'm sure if I checked my DNA it will kick out so many ancestors.
That's okay with me cause I identify as a Christian woman only. It's not where
you came from, but what you doing with this precious life. My first memories
were being raised in this huge house by my parents and fraternal grandparents,
who have Indian and San heritage and maternal grandparents and Indian and White
British heritage. The very next memory being forced by Apartheid government
into Manenberg, which became he'll on earth. My poor husband shared the same
fate being removed from Heathfield.The problem with him being in Manenberg was
because his physical appearance was whiter than the so-called whites. So he
suffered under Coloreds and was even removed twice by Police claiming he was
kidnapped, until they saw his parents. Moving to Mitchell's Plain, where we
raised a family and resided to Belville North in our 50. The point being I would
definitely not change my life should I get a second chance. The 🙌
life you lived created the person you are now, and I Love my life❤.Unfortunately,
there will always be unfairness, and you have to teach your kids how to handle
these situations with the Love of Christ. Thank you again for this important
Topic."
**
62. @Andrea-sg1ri
"I look forward to the conversation because many of us
coloureds don't really know who we are so it might be very sensitive. Colourism
is a big thing in the coloured community that has seperated families til this
day. It was brought on by Apartheid where fair coloureds with straight hair
were favoured above their darker skinned family members with 'kroos' hair. I
must say that I'm very proud of Tyla for sticking to her identity. I'm not a
fan of her music but I love her personality. There's something so very special
when a person knows who they are and chooses to remain true to who they are -
even her accent remains! She sounds like she's from Dbn. I love it. She's
definitely encouraged me to be true to my identity as a Saffa coloured living
in the UK. Being coloured is deeper than a race. We have a rich history of
diversity in our genes. We don't fit into any box. I'd dare to say we have not
been discussed because we are unchartered territory not because it's offensive.
People will always make assumptions about things that don't make sense to them.
The moment a coloured person steps into who they are and are mindful of the
richness of diversity in their genes they can change the world! Thanks for
opening this platform for this convo to take place"
**
63. @rodneymockson
"What hurts my brother is this, in the apartheid eras, we as
coloreds were called Comrades, Maxhabane,we wear the UDF ANC and SACP badges on
our bareds we were toy toying with our fellow black Comrades we couldn't sleep
in our parents homes because you were so cautious and afraid of the apartheid
cops come look for you there, but as soon as we won our freedom together and
our democracy, our black Comrades pushed us aside and neglected us for 31 years
to date thats the sad part"
64.
"As a Black American, I find this content very informative. I
think it was well done."
**
Reply
65. @ChermPetersen
"Know this is exactly what I'm pointing to how do I know you
from America without me asking or wondering.,...by the way you introduce
yourself .....as a black American ......once again let's go back to Tyla....
how much more clarity and exceptional wouldn't it have been if she just
introduced herself to the world as a proud young non white or black but just as
a Afrikaner ... to people from thee other side of the boarders people wouldn't have feel so offended or confused when interviews take place ....what they know
foresure is the fact that this person is
from South Africa but what they don't know is the fact that nor the white race
,nor the black race sees our existing.... that's why we don't really know how
to identify ourselves to the world...if you say white or black you are lying
yourself ..,. that's why I feel my identity in my introduction must speak for
itself.....I hope you get my point ."
**
66. @shannonnaicker4040
"This government has continued with apartheid race
classification. Just ridiculous. Thanks for the video"
67.
"My grandmother and her family were a mix of Javanese
indians. They looked like it also, darker skin with straight hair. My
grandfather more khoi and german mix 🙆♂️ my kids my wife her
mother white and black mix 😂😂😂 so i
cannot tell u the mix, it is straight hair, light skin to dark skin, coarse
hair u just never know until the kid is born 😂😂😂"
68.
"There's also a huge population that
come from St Helena island (where Napoleon was held), a lot coming to the Cape
looking for work. That's my family story at least part of it 😂"
**
Reply
69. @justjoshua_07
"My great grandfather came from there. My grandmother was
part of the first generation of our family to be born here."
**
Reply
70. @WilmaDavis-c9p
"@justjoshua_07 My grandmother also."
**
71. @nathanjosephalard
"The Khoikhoi weren’t one tribe – they were a whole family of
nations. The main Khoikhoi groups included the Nama, Goringhaiqua, Gorachouqua,
Cochoqua, Chainouqua, Hessequa, Attaqua, Inqua, Gonaqua, Korana, and later the
Griqua. Their roots connect deeply with the San, forming the wider Khoisan
heritage of Southern Africa.
The Griquas are a mixed-heritage people primarily descended from Khoikhoi, with additional Dutch/European and some Xhosa/Sotho/Tswana ancestry.
Because many Griquas look more “mixed” (Coloured identity
overlap), people sometimes simplify the origin story to “Dutch + African.”
But historically and genetically:
Khoikhoi + Dutch is the core,
with some Xhosa and other African influences.
Cape Town has a small but historic Bengali Indian presence
dating back to the 1800s. Early arrivals came from Bengal as cooks, artisans,
tailors, and traders, with some becoming part of the Cape Muslim/Malay
community. Their descendants still form a quiet but important part of Cape
Town’s cultural mix today."
**
72. @alecyardley5278
"Penuel, I’m a mixed-race South African with Khoi, Malay, and
French heritage, and I have to be honest, I’ve learnt more in this one video
than I have in the past 26 years of my life. Truly fantastic content. This is
the kind of history we should be learning in schools. South Africa is an
absolutely beautiful place with beautiful people, a real rainbow nation."
**
73. @CoreyJ.Williams
"If the colored people were here in the USA they will be
considered black period!"
**
Reply
74. @joliewoliee
"I am a coloured person that’s in the US and this is true,
but this conversation had nothing with that. It’s to discuss coloureds that
currently live in South Africa."
**
75. @cianyoung34
"Alot of these coloured groups you talking about are now
mixed with each other because of work in other cities this is why we feel we 1
people."
**
76. @tsheporahope1712
"Coming from a painful apartheid era, raised in black
township whereby my grandmother had to hide her silky long hair with a dock,
unspoken of why she is fluent in Afrikaans, being called a bushman because of
my ginger hair and had to fight all my childhood life but having almost half of my neighbors as mix race of setswana
speaking and coloured and our relatives from Easterus only attending funerals,
what a wound you just opened, at work I usually tell them am proudly South
African, even my sons as much their father is Mopedi, they know mix race
leanage they don't identify with tribe but with proud South Africans"
****
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