In a recent session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Zimbabwean swimmer Kirsty Coventry became the first woman and the first African elected as President of the IOC. I had not come across Mrs. Coventry before, but what immediately struck me is that when you look at her photograph, you can clearly see that she is of European ancestry. She is not exactly what most people would envisage as an African person—and yet, nonetheless, by both birth and citizenship she is indeed African.
I can imagine that there may be many people who might baulk at the notion of a ‘white’ person being acknowledged as an ‘African.’ Maybe there are those who feel offended that it is not an ethnically African person being recognised as the first African President of the IOC. I do not know Mrs. Coventry, but I would like to think that there is absolutely no doubt in her mind that she is African and proud to be so. She has, after all, represented Zimbabwe at the highest levels of international sporting competition, as an African athlete.
Having lived in Australia for almost half a century, and having been an Australian citizen for most of that time, I have no doubt that there are some people who would still consider me to not be Australian. In fact, I know, because they show their position and their attitude in the way they talk to me or otherwise interact with me. Yes, we human beings are very much inclined to look at the outside, regardless of the adage, “Never judge a book by its cover.“