Afrophobic Attacks in Virtual Spaces: The Case of Three Hashtags in South Africa

Abstract

Contemporary discourse on migration in the Republic of South Africa reveals recurring attacks on foreign nationals over the past decade. Recent literature shows that the attacks have mainly targeted foreign nationals from other African countries. However, this growing literature focuses on physical attacks on foreigners while negating cyberspace ones. This article focuses on attacks on foreign nationals in virtual space. The study sought to answer two research questions: In what way are migration and migrants being portrayed on South African Twitter? In what way are Twitter hashtags being used to perpetuate afrophobia? A study of three hashtags was conducted. The article drew from the scapegoating theory to interrogate tweets on South African Twitter. Data was generated using an online hashtag tracker. A qualitative content analysis of three hashtags (#PutSouthAfricansFirst, #NormaliseHiringSACitizens and #SAHomeAffairsCorruption) was conducted. The study noted the omnipresent view that all black foreigners in South Africa were “illegal immigrants” regardless of their migration status. Besides, black foreigners were stereotyped as criminals. The Department of Home Affairs was viewed as complicit in the influx of illegal immigrants in South Africa through corrupt activities. The tweets also blamed the government for its inability to resolve the problem of illegal immigrants. The study established that hashtags were now the new frontier for afrophobic attacks on black foreigners in South Africa.