Ubuntu Precepts and the Coverage of Xenophobic Discourses in South African Community Newspapers: An Afrocentric Systematic Critique

Abstract

In post-apartheid South Africa, community newspapers that publish in native languages were established to promote the values and principles of the new constitutional democracy. This paper critiques how the epistemic dominance and coverage of the xenophobic attack discourses in South African community newspapers in a way contradict the values and principles of Ubuntu as an African philosophy. The paper focuses on how such depictions, coverage and dominance could have the potential to perpetuate the legacy of colonialism and neocolonialism in the post-apartheid era and intensify divisions, devalue dignity, and undermine the unity of African societies. It argues that these colonial legacies of the past conflict with the values and principles of ubuntu, compromise social cohesion, and continue the ongoing neo-colonial discourses that separate and insinuate attacks on other African nationals. Reinforced by the framing theory of representation, this Afrocentric systematic review employed a purposive sampling technique to select at least twenty secondary research articles and theses published between 2015 and 2023 by searching various repositories. The selection of these texts was based on their online availability and accessibility. The paper used thematic analysis to explore the selected materials to develop the related themes and subthemes that informed the entire conversation. Moreover, the findings highlight how the perpetual discourses on xenophobic stereotypes, linguistic features, and expressions used in community newspapers to signify other African nationals could in a way, contradict significant values of ubuntu, communal living, and social cohesion that define the African dignity and unity. Keywords: Community Newspaper, Immigrants’ Stereotypes, Social Cohesion, Ubuntu, Xenophobic Discourses