Miss South Africa 2024 Finalist Chidimma Adetshina Speaks On Facing Xenophobia Despite Hometown Roots

Chidimma Adetshina, a 23-year-old law student born in Soweto, has made it to the top 14 of the Miss South Africa 2024 pageant. Despite her achievements, she has faced xenophobic backlash on social media.

Critics have targeted her Nigerian surname, questioning her right to represent South Africa. Chidimma has confirmed that she was born and raised in South Africa, and her father is Nigerian, while her mother is of Mozambican descent.

As Chidimma progressed in the competition, the public outcry over her nationality grew louder. She has expressed her hurt over the “black on black” hate she has received.

One Instagram follower suggested she enter Miss Nigeria instead, to which Chidimma replied, “How? If I was born in SA and lived here my whole life. Just because my dad is Nigerian doesn’t mean I’m a citizen of Nigeria.”

She added that if the title is meant for her, God will make it happen. Speaking to the Sowetan, Chidimma admitted that she was hurt and disappointed by the comments from fellow South Africans.

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She emphasized that she tries hard to represent her country with pride but feels unsupported. Chidimma pointed out that she is not the only contestant with a non-South African surname, suggesting that the backlash might be due to her skin colour.

She also highlighted that this issue of xenophobia is something she had to overcome growing up.

According to South African law, citizenship can be acquired by birth, descent, or naturalisation. Chidimma qualifies by birth, having been born at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital and raised in Pimville, Soweto.

This situation is not unique to her; Vanessa Carreira, Miss SA 2001, was born to Portuguese-Angolan parents. Despite their backgrounds, both women are South African citizens by birth and have every right to represent their country.

 

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