I have just re-read your article/blog above. In my opinion, if I were to grade it, it would get a DISMAL. I am so sorry, it is so uninformed and ignorant. First of all, you have no clue what white values are. And the three points you made above are not representtive of a larger population of those you call coconuts. You have no clue of what you’re talking about. I a have made my conclusion right there in the middle of your article before I read further that you do not have substantial evidence to back up your argument. SO BIASED AND UNINFORMED. It would have been even more professional if you cited some form of academic or journalistic research on this topic. Any Joe on the street could write this junk and make their own uneducated and prejudiced comments.
-First of all you have NO CLUE as to white values are and I am included in the bracket. Could it be that what you are trying explain is ‘POP CULTURE’ of which some may feel offended by freedoms that many so-called coconuts enjoy, or should I say they harbor some inferior complexity, which, in my opnion is ridiculously silly.

Let me ask you a question, South Africa is a diverse nation with so many nationalities and languages, with English being the most official/universal. How come you do not criticize Indians or Coloreds who speak with English and Afrikaner accents, when all of them are dark skinned and half white. They have their own culture and values, but choose to adopt or embrace Western and Eurocentric culture as well. We live in global village. SO get over it.

I do not believe, not for one minute, that you wer setting a trap by writing this article or any other article related to this. You know wxactly what you were doing an dof course you were anticipating a repsonse. Now quit insulting our intelligence. At least you have to be intuitive enough to know that some if not most of your readers are critics as well, and can read between the lines.
I have no qulams with Black people with western or Eurocentric accent. If they choose to abandon their culture or values , it their problem. What matters to me t he most is what one can do for their brother or sister-(i.e. make a difference in your own community or society).
Petty stuff like judging people for how they look or speak is way too shallow in my book and it does not contribute in anyway to our well-being. It’s like gossiping, which is mostly fuelled by people who are not happy with themselves or have too much time in their hands, spreads like wild-fire and the next hing you know you have all this judging and character bashing comments above(including mine)..

And my next question wold be, how on earth could you write this article when our very people are so critical or should embarrased of their own who speak fluent Zulu or Xhosa with what we call a ‘country accent’. When I was growing up young people used to call them ooBaru, just because they grew up ezilalini and are clueless when it comes to eKasi Taal or just popular culture, period.

we live in the 21st century, and what does speech have to do with African values? Values are not only extrinsic.. You cannot make conclusions about people by what you see or hear. We’re so wrapped up in technology advancement and trying to grab the latest gadgets and toys, forgetting all of us definitely have some coconut fabric in ourselves.

South African educational institutions and workplaces are integrated because we fought for those privileges. Many have made friends with White people, and now you have a problem about it?
How are we supposed to produce competent youth if they;re not influennt in the most universal language(English). So what is a parent supposed to do when English teachers, teach English in Xhosa, if you raising a child with dreams of excelling in college/university. I know my argument maybe somewhat out of context, but I often look at the bigger picture.

There is definitely nothing wrong with Blackness or having an African accent- infact I am proud of my African accent, but they way I choose to speak a foreign language should not reduce my entire personality or the real me to being labelled a coconut. In my book, that is a complete shallow view of ones whole-being and values. Hey, if a black person speaks like Oprah Winfrey, but has a big heart and in love and at peace with his or her neighbor- it’s enough for me. And if one is offended by how one speaks- that is some form of prejudice in my opinion. It’s funny how we slam people for speaking a certain way, but we always applaud other ethnic groups(esp. whites) for incorrectly pronouncing Zulu or Xhosa dialects- when they speak in our accents. And when they speak our languages fluently with African Accents nobody complains.
Have you ever been in a foreign country where you had to repeat yourself because they do not understand a word you are saying, even when you speak in their own langauage?
I am not saying one should completely abandon their instrinsic blackness. Being accomodative to other cultures is who we are. And for those who forsake their blackness- they hve some deep-seated issues i don;t even care to entertian. And when your own people bad mouth you about speaking differently or choose to have white friends, is a double-standard to me, when we wear, drive and use brands of products mae by whites and other ethnicities that are not African. Our culture is so diluted- and I find it unjust to judge people based on those facts you pointed about.

In sumary, I am not impressed – not this time.

English is an international language – and the world’s main computer language.