I’m an African not a Coloured

In the chapter, I’m an African not a Coloured, Canadian-born Wesley Oakes writes about being constructed as coloured in South Africa and his desire to be seen, instead, as black or African. Writing about his experiences as an outsider grappling with external identity constructions, his reflections illuminate the often taken-for granted everyday processes through which ‘racial’ identities are produced. Wesley constructs coloured as a less authentic identity than black or African, interpreting the former as an apartheid category.

Reference:
Oakes, Wesley. 'I’m an African not a Coloured', in Rob Pattman and Sultan Khan (Eds.), Undressing Durban (Durban: Madiba Press, 2007), pp. 78-81.