Rogue-Metalsmith asked me to post this update as she was aware many
UP subscribers where curious and concerned with her status. Enjoy.
JMc
"Personal Update: South Africa's Shift & My Journey Through It
Hello friends,
I've been sitting with a lot over the last few years and felt it was time to share a more detailed update. A great deal has changed since 2020 "globally and personally" and in South Africa, those shifts have been particularly intense.
Let me start by confirming something many of you have questioned: Yes, Julius Malema has faced multiple court orders to cease inciting violence. Yet, time and again, those warnings have gone ignored, with little consequence. News24 reported that Malema and the EFF were taken to court for hate speech, and while judgments have been handed down, enforcement has been inconsistent at best. This has left many South Africans "particularly minorities" feeling unsafe, unheard, and unprotected by the very systems meant to offer stability.
2020: A Wake-Up CallWhile the pandemic shook the entire globe, in South Africa it laid bare existing fractures in our society. Strangely, COVID-19 sparked some surprising silver linings: online delivery services and logistics improved significantly. More importantly, communities began pulling together again. Neighbors reconnected. Grassroots movements started mobilizing.
At the same time, we saw some disturbing actions from the state. NGOs offering food relief were ordered to stop unless they handed everything over to state-run warehouses. Daily Maverick and Mail & Guardian reported on the backlash, as many groups refused, understanding what such centralization could mean in a country already riddled with corruption.
Then came the alcohol and tobacco bans. These weren't just health measures, they gave rise to a thriving black market. BBC and Reuters documented how this empowered criminal networks while doing little to stop actual consumption.
2021-2023: The HangoverThe following years blurred together for many. Retrenchments soared. I was laid off in late 2021 and, like countless others, had to figure out a new way forward. Unemployment among white South Africans, particularly women, is often quietly ignored under the veil of BEE (Black Economic Empowerment) legislation. While its intentions may have been just decades ago, its implementation today often excludes entire groups based on skin color alone - with no regard for merit or need.
I took the plunge and started my own business. It took until 2024 to finally stabilize it. In the process, I faced challenges that went beyond the norm - like being trapped in a government elevator due to poor maintenance. That moment, suffocating in darkness and bureaucracy, felt symbolic of what South Africa has become: beautiful, broken, and indifferent to those caught in the machinery.
2024: The Final StrawI began looking at immigration options, though asylum had always been a last resort. But when the South African government made land expropriation without compensation legal, I knew we had crossed a line. Even more chilling, the legislation is worded vaguely - dangerously so. It doesn't just refer to land. As someone who has worked with attorneys for over 14 years, I know how deliberate vague legislation can be. It opens the door to arbitrary asset seizure - homes, businesses, vehicles. There are no safeguards.
Al Jazeera and Reuters have tracked the evolution of this legislation, and while some proposals were rejected in 2021, newer drafts continue to emerge with broader and more ambiguous language.
At this point, I realized I couldn't risk the future of my family. The writing was on the wall.
Where We Are NowSo, here we are. The plan is simple, but heavy: sell what we can, and leave. Asylum is not ideal, but it's looking like the only way out.
I don't share this lightly. It's been emotionally exhausting. We are a minority being increasingly marginalized, and while that may sound alarmist to some, it is a lived reality for many. Policies have crippled our economy and divided our people - not to uplift the disadvantaged, but to create a new class of elites while pushing others out entirely.
Still, we persevere. As a people of faith and law, many of us have held the line as long as we could. But now, for the sake of our children, our futures, and our dignity, we must seek safer ground.
Thank you to those who have stood by me. Your support means more than I can say.
Stay frosty
"
