Chumani Maxwele: who is he and why has he received deferential treatment. Part 1

Founder Fallist Chumani Maxwele: who is he and why has he received deferential treatment by leaders of the University of Cape Town? Part 1: birth to April 2015.

https://rationalstandard.com/who-is-chumani-maxwele/ 

Tim Crowe

What do we know about alleged finger- flicking, faeces-flinging, arrogant, denigrating, bullying, academically deficient, racially bigoted, misogynist, arsonist and ‘paleo-undergraduate student’ potential murderer(?) Chumani Maxwele?

The ‘prequel’
Maxwele was born in 1985 in the Eastern Cape and is the son of a domestic worker and a miner. He relocated to Delft, a township on the outskirts of Cape Town notorious for its high levels of HIV/AIDS, crime/unemployment and dysfunctional schools.

He described his initial employment as an assistant at Woolworths supermarket and Exclusive Books as demeaning.

These ‘negative’ experiences made him ”more and more angry”.

On 10 February 2010, Maxwele was arrested by South African presidential body guards for giving the finger to Jacob Zuma's presidential motorcade. He claimed to have been “bullied” overnight by members of the South African Police Services. With support from the F.W. de Klerk Foundation, he lodged a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission. He sued Police Minister Mthethwa for R1.4 million and demanded an apology; but apparently settled for R80000 and an apology.  While this was happening, his lawyer who worked on a contingency basis, unexpectedly withdrew from the case. 

Why? Was there ever a settlement?  How much was he paid?  What did Maxwele do with any money paid out?

University of Cape Town (UCT)
Later that year, despite this largesse, he was awarded a scholarship to study at UCT. After seven years of generally unsuccessful study, Maxwele was awarded a three-year Bachelor’s degree. Despite this less-than-stellar performance, apparently, he has been allowed to continue studying at UCT in 2018. Who’s paid his fees, assuming that a seven-year scholarship(s) was/were not warranted?

Even if he has a ‘benefactor’, how can this extended association be justified on academic grounds, even without consideration of his outrageous behaviour chronicled below?

The March 2015 ‘Blitzkrieg’
On 9 March 2015, Maxwele sounded the death-knell of constructive transformation at UCT, favouring potentially destructive, politically and racially driven ‘decolonization’. He planned/choregraphed/staged lawbreaking defacement of the little-loved statue of notorious Cecil John Rhodes, smearing it with human faeces and urine transported from portable toilets that characterize local largely ‘black’ townships.

Rhodes’ statue was unveiled at UCT in 1934 in a relatively inconspicuous site in Middle Campus.  Afrikaner students formally demanded its removal in the 1950s when it was moved to the foot of Jameson Hall stairs. It engendered painful memories derived from the deaths of 26000+ aged/female/infant Afrikaners in British concentration camps during the South African War and their scorched-earth conquest.  A similar number of ‘black’ people died in segregated camps.

A dozen ‘students’, journalists and television reporters were invited to the statue’s defacement. After this illegal act, Maxwele said:

“How do you decolonise Africa? Fanon made it clear. Decolonisation must happen through violence. I think it is highly unlikely South Africa can avoid this.”

“I don’t have to justify anything to a white male or a white institution.  Nothing whatsoever”. 

He compared himself to a young Nelson Mandela who faced the brutal Verwoerd-led Apartheid regime, describing himself as a “young [30 at the time], intelligent critical thinker” who “welcomes discourse” and “is open to debate”.

Acting VC Prof. Sandra Klopper “condemned” Maxwele’s “reprehensible” actions,  and assured UCT’s Community that decisive action would be taken. Maxwele was further charged for assaulting a security officer.

Klopper’s assurance was not delivered on by former Rhodes scholar VC Dr Max Price. The assault charge never resulted in a disciplinary hearing, let alone court case.

Initially, Maxwele’s vulgar act was tolerated, even welcomed, by many who had yearned for meaningful consultation and decisive transformation relating to ‘offensive’ symbols. 

Sadly, the transformational process was commandeered by politically/racially motivated Fallists-in-waiting with broader ‘decolonization’ demands. Their ‘evidence’/motives/intentions were made obvious by Fallists on 16 March at a seminar: "Heritage, signage and symbolism" chaired by Transformation DVC Crain Soudien when they choreographically undermined proceedings. In ensuing discussion, a ‘black’ student asked: “How can we engage when we are intimidated and treated like criminals?”  Soudien asked: “Is this [institutional racism] really true?”

UCT Executive Director Russell Ally commented tellingly: “Whether it’s true or not is not an issue.”

Things came to a head on 20 March.

Price described Fallists as a “critical mass of people who think the time [after seven years led by Price] has come”, and “applauded them for bringing transformation issues into focus”. However, he promised that "no-one would be left behind".

Remember this promise.

On the same day, the UCT Student Parliament stated:

“We will no longer accept the terms of engagement, on issues of transformation specifically, being dictated to us. The management of the University is often guilty of this. The power dynamics of the university are such that it is in a context of a structure which perpetuates racism. It is time for the management of the university to listen.”

The Fallists reiterated this position later when they invaded and occupied the Bremner Administration Building, renaming it ‘Azania House’.

Still later that evening, at a University Assembly in a jam-packed Jameson Hall set up to discuss the removal of Rhodes’ statue, a small group of ”well-organised” Fallists “hijacked” the meeting, displacing the UCT representative, Convocation President Barney Pityana. They “implement[ed] a carefully-prepared plan”, presenting their unequivocal message through a range of speakers. ‘Black’ students are fed up with “years and years” of pleading with an “un-caring and un-listening”, “bureaucratically incompetent”, “commodified” Executive who evaded consultation/decisive-action concerning transformation. 

Representative comments by Fallists:

“This varsity doesn’t care about you; it’s not going to help you; and it’s not going to listen to you.”  

“Max Price and his management team have failed you.”

A student, who only identified himself as Ezra, pointed at Price, while screaming repeatedly: “Blood on your hands!”

“For many years, my multitude of emails, letters, affidavits to Price have been ignored”.

There was little discussion of odious Rhodes. Indeed, Fallists supressed results of a Faculty of Engineering & the Built Environment poll on whether or not the statue should be moved.  Nearly half of those eligible voted, 60% against the removal of the statue.  Similar results were announced for informal surveys in Faculties of Science and Commerce.

So much for “leaving no one behind”.

April Fools
On 9 April, Rhodes’ statue was removed with undignified fanfare. The statue was defaced and Fallists shouted, amongst other hate speech, “One settler, one bullet”. Price said: ”We will investigate charges against them [the miscreants].” Moreover, non-SRC-connected Fallists reneged on their commitment to vacate ‘Azania House’ after the statue’s removal.

There is no evidence of any investigation, let alone of disciplinary action.

That evening, SRC President Mahapa spoke on transformation to the UCT Association of Black Alumni on transformation. Key quotes:

“Our integration is nothing but ‘black’ people assimilating to what is still regarded as righteous, ordained, intelligent, beautiful and angelic whiteness.”

“Blacks are still seen as merely appendages to a ‘white’ society.”

“Our path leads only to despondency and destitution.”

“We therefore need to consolidate our power and break the resistance of the ‘white’ community in trying to preserve the status quo. Blacks need to rally behind dismantling ‘white’ supremacy to its very core.”

“UCT's environment propagates Uncle Toms [black’ liberals] who will take every opportunity to ridicule blacks who speak of the problem of racism; they claim that class is the issue.”

“Black folks must rid themselves of the ulcer called assimilation; we need to eliminate the need to assimilate in any way, shape or form to whiteness because we are perpetuating our own oppression and the destruction of our humanity. Unity amongst blacks is a necessary first step and the goal is self-determination towards the creation of an independent African society.”

Maxwele’s initial actions were discussed on 15 April at a meeting of the UCT Convocation, illegally attended by Maxwele. Price said he was unable to take action against Maxwele because he had used excrement to deface Rhodes’ statue.  Had he used paint, he could and would have been prosecuted.  Price further stated that, should Maxwele re-offend, he would take “decisive action”.  But, within a matter of days, Price granted blanket amnesty to Maxwele and other hate-speaking Fallists who, on 8 April, had violently invaded a special meeting of UCT’s Council, shouting: "One Settler, One Bullet".

Price’s amnesty  was granted “in the spirit” of “restorative justice”, which is, by definition, supposed to “repair the harm caused by crime by involving meetings between victims, offenders and community members”, emphasizing “accountability and making amends”.

There were no “meetings” attended by Fallists and victims (e.g. polled science/engineering/commerce students) at which there was discussion of lawbreaking. Matters were ‘settled’ by the UCT Executive.  Maxwele and now full-blown Fallists made no amends and were not held accountable.

Price and Council Chairman Archbishop Ndungane, an anti-apartheid activist imprisoned with Mandela, issued the following statement regarding the process:

“This process has been vindicated by the number of people who have come into the debates opposed to removing the statue and who have changed their minds as a result of the frank engagement. This is exactly how a university should work and we believe is an example to the country in dealing with heritage issues.”

What “people”? What “debates”? What “engagement”? What “dealing”?

More in Part 2.

My lived experience

My lived experience   

Early days in the USA
I was the middle child of three born (in 1948) in Boston, Massachusetts, USA , to second-generation Irish-American immigrants.  My grandfather (also Timothy Crowe) was born in 1880 in Tipperary, Ireland, arguably the most anti-English county in Eire, a country viewed by many 19th Century Englishmen as a less-than--civilized  'sh**hole'. He immigrated, virtually penniless, to Boston, pursuing a career as a carpenter in a t-Oilean Ur, “The Fresh Land,”. Although he was an ardent Anglophobe, he disliked 'Boston Brahmans' (the local "more English than the English") even more because of their 'racism', epitomized by shop signs that said: "No dogs, ni**ers, or Irishmen." A half-century before, these bigots were represented openly by the hateful Know Nothings Party, the anti-Catholic Ku Klux Klan of their time.

My father was a veteran of World War II. He was a unionist, Democrat (who disliked the Kennedys), meat-worker. He took on part-time jobs, often spanning six days a week, to feed, cloth, accommodate and educate his children.  When we kids were old enough to fend for ourselves, Mama (a clerical assistant) joined Daddy in the workforce.   

I and my brother (who eventually became a dean at the University of Kansas) were the first of our extended family to attend university. I attended the University of Massachusetts/Boston (UMB) and undertook a Bachelor of Arts programme of study in biology because of my additional interest in history and philosophy. It was only because we both obtained academic scholarships, worked in the evenings/weekends and were allowed to continue to live at home that allowed him and I to successfully complete our undergraduate degrees. 

My parents were immensely proud of us. But, they could fully appreciate only my brother's achievements because he studied to become a university administrator. My professional interests at the time, animal behaviour and evolutionary biology, we're 'Greek' to them. My grandparents never understood how my career warranted full-time employment.

My undergraduate advisor at UMB, Dr François Vuilleumier, was one of Harvard Prof. Ernst Mayr’s last Ph.D. students.  François (an eminent ‘island’ biogeographer) supervised my first research on the behaviour of an introduced population of Africa’s most widespread and characteristic bird, the Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris. [The is a 'toop' that inhabits the area around UCT's Bremner Building.] He introduced me to Mayr (with whom – and Cecil Rhodes – I share a birthday -5 July).  Mayr is regarded as the 20^th Century’s foremost avian biologist, and his contributions to the theory and practice of evolutionary biology (in particular at the levels of subspecies – ‘race’- and species) have earned him the title as the 20^th Century Darwin.  

Mayr is also, arguably, the ‘father’ of biological philosophy.  François and Ernst were my early mentors vis-à-vis philosophy, biogeography and evolutionary biology.

In 1970, I graduated from UMB (magna cum laude) and was offered postgraduate scholarships by several leading US universities.  I chose the University of Chicago (UC) because, at that time, its Department of Biology was arguably the best in the world.  At UC, I expanded my studies on the Helmeted Guineafowl to include their geographical morphological ('racial') variation.  Simultaneously, I learned of the genetic senselessness of human ‘races’ from Prof. Richard Lewontin, the first molecular geneticist to demonstrate greater within-than-between population genetic variation in Homo sapiens.   

I also learned sociobiology from its first ‘card-carrying’ proponents, African primatologists Profs Stuart and Jeanne Altmann, and had the opportunity to comment (constructively negatively) on Jeanne’s classic 1974 paper on the observational study of behaviour - cited more than 10000 times.  Last, but not least, I conducted project research (Lots of Weeds: Insular Phytogeography of Vacant Urban Lots) with pioneer evolutionary ecologist and conservation biologist, Prof. Dan Janzen.

In the meantime, I served, part-time, in the US Army National Guard, but, luckily, wasn’t posted to Vietnam.

In 1973, I turned down an offer from the Altmanns to study baboon sociobiology in Kenya, and chose to study Helmeted Guineafowl in South Africa.

My 'baboon' replacement was eaten by a lion.

Africa

Kimberley - My African ‘experience’ began in 1973 when I won a Ph.D. scholarship at the University of Cape Town (UCT) reserved for overseas students. I was also was ‘hired’ by DeBeers Consolidated Mines Limited at the princely salary of R112 per month (lower than the most poorly paid diamond miner) to study guineafowl (for my Ph.D. in Zoology) on one of their game farms near Kimberley, South Africa.  My palatial home for five days a week during the next 2.8 years was a caravan in the middle of nowhere. My ‘special’ weekly meal was a can of Prima Beef Stew.  I bunked in the Kimberley Museum on weekends.

During my time in Kimberley, I encountered my De Beers sponsor, Nikky Oppenheimer, who hunted guineafowl on the game farm. I also bumped into the 'banned' ‘Prof.’ Robert Sobukwe in the outer offices of his GP who was treating his lung cancer.  I had no idea of his role as an anti-Apartheid liberation leader. We chatted pleasantly about ‘racial’ variation in guineafowl for the best part of an hour. 

UCT - When I completed my Ph.D. field research in 1976 (with virtually no savings), I successfully competed for a junior lecturer’s post at the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology (‘Fitztitute’) at UCT because I had an M.Sc. degree (from UC).  The international reality at the time (including South Africa), was that there were no similarly educated/skilled ‘black’ applicants who would have applied for such a lowly post. The annual salary (R4920 p.a.) made it difficult to find accommodation, so I slept on the floor of my office for the first two months until I found a room for R50 per month within walking distance of UCT. I could not afford to purchase an automobile.

‘Stupidly’, in 1977, I married one of my postgrad students (subsequently lifetime close colleague), Anna 'Ann' Teichert, who ‘came on board’ with student debt. She was raised by a single mother and was a ‘mature’ UCT student, since she had to work for two years post-matric to save enough funds (supported by a hefty loan) to cover university fees. She has her own 'life-experience' story, culminating in an international award-winning Ph.D. on 'standards' in South African National Matriculation Examination.

In 1978, we moved ‘up-market’ (R65 per month) into a flea-ridden flat opposite UCT's Baxter Theatre and used R300 of Ann’s bursary money to buy a 15-year-old Volksie Beetle. A year later, when I was promoted ad hominem to lecturer and became eligible for a housing subsidy, the now heavily pregnant Ann and I went massively into debt to purchase a semi-detached cottage.  This was possible only because the father of one of my close friends was a director of Grahamstown Building Society and house prices had plummeted after the 1976 Soweto Student and other uprisings. We also incurred ‘white tax’ by inviting my mother-in-law to live with us.

With regard to academic ‘coddling’, my Ph.D. supervisor strongly supported my novel approach of submitting the chapters of my dissertation for publication to peer-reviewed journals as I completed them. Otherwise, like virtually all Science Faculty post-grad students, I was left to my own devices to produce a passable dissertation and publishable material. At the end of 1978, when I was capped by UCT Chancellor Harry Oppenheimer, all of my dissertation was published or in press. Perhaps due to prodding by Nikky, Chancellor Oppenheimer also shook my hand, saying: “We enjoyed working with you Dr Crowe”.

‘Fast-tracked’ at UCT - Our lot in life increased ‘significantly’ in the early 1980s.  Ann, because of her broad knowledge of basic biology, was offered an ‘outsourced’, year-to-year contract post as a lecturer in UCT’s newly established Academic Support Programme. Her post was created to help first-year students educationally ‘hamstrung’ by Bantu Education to “bridge the gap” in order to cope with UCT’s highly challenging and competitive socio-academic environment. She also brought in funds by additional consulting jobs involving adjudicating national high school life sciences examinations. Sadly, after eight years of this uncertain employment, she had to leave UCT to take up a permanent teaching post at the expensive, non-racial school attended by our daughter. During this period, I was also promoted to senior lecturer at UCT, outcompeting applicants from Oxford and Princeton.  At that time, worldwide, there were no Ph.D.-educated ‘blacks’ who could have competed for the post as described.

The ‘upside’ of Ann’s reluctant job change, was, because of her increased and stable salary and much-improved house prices, we were able to sell our little cottage for a sizable profit.  Once again, going massively into debt, we were able to purchase a somewhat larger house in up-market Newlands, the last one to sell for less than R100000.

Also during the 1980s, I acted as assistant director of the Fitztitute, helping to transform it from a colonial institute involved with natural history studies on birds into a world leading ‘ivory-tower’ centre for African avian biology, focusing on birds as functional components of ecosystems. This culminated in 1985 when the Fitztitute ‘community’ held an ‘indaba’ to consider a possible change in its Mission. While not abandoning excellent, curiosity-driven, ‘ivory tower’ research, we chose to aggressively pursue the embryonic international science – CONSERVATION BIOLOGY.

I find my professional ‘niche’ - My roles in the innovative transformation of the Fitztitute were to develop a one-year, intensive, Masters-level academic programme in Conservation Biology (the CB Programme) and a Gamebird Research Programme (GBP) based on their evolutionary biology and biologically sustainable and economically viable wingshooting (gamebird hunting).

The history and undisputed success of the CB Programme are outlined in an article in the UCTNEWS: Afrocentric, inclusive, socially relevant academic ‘evolution’ at the University of Cape Town https://www.uct.ac.za/dailynews/?id=10155  It was funded by the South African National Research Foundation (NRF) and a smorgasbord of private sector investors, including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur (‘genius grant’) Foundation. It also attracted interest from a wealthy private investor who solicited and application (drafted by me) to compete for a “chair in environmental science”. That application was successful and eventually resulted in UCT’s Pola Pasvolsky Chair in Conservation Biology.

The GBP was funded largely by the African Gamebird Research, Education and Development Trust (AGRED - Patron: Nikky Oppenheimer) which I helped to establish as a founding trustee. AGRED was also supported financially by other groups of wingshooters, farmers, the NRF and the SA Department of Trade and Industry. The GBP was managed by Dr Rob Little (its first Ph.D. graduate); produced 22 M.Sc., Ph.D. and postdoctoral graduates (more than 90% of whom went on to successful professional careers) and 83 peer-reviewed scientific publications; culminating in the Little & Crowe (2000 & 2011) book: Gamebirds of Southern Africa.   

Rob went on to become Director of Conservation at WWF South Africa. He now manages the Fitztitute’s DST/NRF Centre of Excellence and recently (2016) published Terrestrial Gamebirds & Snipes of Africa.

Academic development - Ten years after earning my Ph.D., as a result of demonstrably (merit-award winning) excellent work performance at UCT and consistent progression professionally internationally, I was promoted ad hominem from senior lecturer to associate professor and, eventually (2003) to full professor.  The long gaps between these promotions (10 and 15 years respectively) and several unsuccessful application attempts were consequences of failing to meet the stringent requirements for ad hominem promotion that remain in place within UCT’s Faculty of Science.

Other professional achievements - In 1990, I founded the Evolutionary Discussion Group (EDG) and edited ORIGIN, its newsletter. In 1996, I convened the 15th Willi Hennig International Society for Systematic Biology meeting at UCT; was Associate Editor of Cladistics, the Society’s journal during 1997-2001; served on the society’s council and was twice a candidate for the society’s presidency. During 1999-2003, I was a council member for the Southern Flagship Institution set up to transform and develop Cape Town-based museums funded by the national government. During 1999-2003, I served on the Editorial Board of Systematic Biology, the preeminent journal for systematic biology. I was also a founder of the Southern African Society for Systematic Biology (SASSB - an off-shoot of the EDG), and served as its president of during 2002-2003.

In 2003, I gave the address honouring the retirement of Dr Phillip Clancey, avian systematist and former director of the Durban Museum. Soon after, I helped Dr Clancey to establish a generous financial trust fund for research on the systematics of African birds, managed by the Fitztitute. During 2004-2005, I was elected Chairperson of the South African Biosystematics Initiative, and served on its Steering Committee until 2007. In 2011, the SASSB presented me with a life-time achievement award for his “extraordinary contributions to systematics in southern Africa”.

From an ‘avian’ perspective, I was elected life member of the Committee of the International Ornithological Congress, and Vice-chairperson of its Scientific Programme Committee during 1994-95.

With regard to conservation biology, during 1996-1998, I served as president of the Wildlife Management Association of Southern Africa during 1999-2002.

Excellence - In 2004, I was an author and deputy leader of a successful application to the National Research Foundation and the Department of Science and Technology for the Fitztitute to become a national Centre of Excellence. In 2007, I was elected a Fellow of UCT.

Academic offspring - In total, I supervised 33 M.Sc., 15 Ph.D. and six post-doctoral graduates, published nearly 300 papers in peer-reviewed journals, and presented scientific papers at 82 conferences. I use an additional measure of a scientist (academic Darwinian fitness) as more than just the quantity and quality of empirical publications. Additional criteria are the number of philosophical papers published; communication of research results at conferences; performance and employment success of graduate students; and service to discipline. All of my post-grads have found successful professional careers, seven at the professorial level. Perhaps my highest honour is that many of my former students address me as “dad”.

Personal matters – Throughout my time at UCT, I neither observed (nor was informed of) any overt racist acts. I cannot say the same for sexism and sexual harassment. Having said that, with few exceptions, few of UCT academics with whom I interacted could be described as "nurturing", especially at the post-grad level. At UCT, students are, far too often, allowed to “sink or swim”. 

After our daughter graduated from UCT (thanks to its reduced fees policy for staff offspring), she immigrated to the USA. 

Now Ann was free to resign her secure teaching position at a high school to undertake Ph.D. research at UCT.  Her international prize-winning dissertation (examined by Prof. Jonathan Jansen) was a benchmark study of ‘standards’ as they relate to high school Life Sciences matriculation examinations, covering the period 1990-2012.  Despite the collapsing educational system at the time, all that UCT could offer her initially with regard to employment was, once again, part-time, ‘outsourced’, contract employment within UCT’s School of Education.

After a couple of unsatisfying years, the ‘outsourced’ Academic Support post in biology she had once occupied for nearly a decade during the 1980s was made permanent (as part of the ‘deal’ merging the Departments of Botany and Zoology).  Ann was the unanimous choice.  However, even though it was advertised at the senior-lecture-level and given her formidable qualifications, she was only offered the post at the lecturer level. After unsuccessfully appealing to the UCT Executive against this professional insult, like Archie Mafeje, she declined UCT’s offer.

Soon after this, in 2013, I retired after 40 years of pensionable service.  Despite having a modest life style; following the advice of a highly competent final advisor; having fully paid off our home mortgage and not having continued ‘white tax’ (Granny had died); we can only afford a modest existence (no eating out and only biannual overseas vacations).  This still requires Ann continuing her national educational consulting work.  Moreover, while our neighbours drive brand-new BMWs and Mercedes Benzs, we drive my Ann’s 18-year-old Toyota. I have had to sell my 1968 Mini Traveller because we cannot afford its cost of maintenance.

“And the rich get rich and the poor get children.  In the meantime, in between time, ain’t we got fun?”