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‘Roadkill’ rage: Steenhuisen says his remark was just a ‘bad joke’, but activists accuse him of ‘misogyny’ and ‘hypocrisy’

‘Roadkill’ rage: Steenhuisen says his remark was just a ‘bad joke’, but activists accuse him of ‘misogyny’ and ‘hypocrisy’
Victoria O’Regan
By Victoria O’Regan
22 Aug 2022
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While DA leader John Steenhuisen has doubled down on the ‘roadkill’ reference he made about a former partner on a lifestyle podcast last week, gender activists have accused him of being ‘hostile’ and ‘aggressive’.

DA leader John Steenhuisen has tried to deflect criticism of a reference to his ex-wife as “roadkill” by claiming it was a joke and that he was appearing on a lighthearted show. But gender activists say the comparison “even in jest, falls far short of standards of responsible and gender-sensitive political leadership.” 

Steenhuisen was a guest on an episode of the well-known Podcast and Chill last week, when host MacGyver “MacG” Mukwevho asked him what he understood roadkill to be. Steenhuisen replied: “It sounds a lot like my ex-wife.”

In the episode released on Thursday, Steenhuisen’s response elicited roars of laughter from MacG and co-host Sol Phenduka. The DA leader did himself no favours by following up with “flat chicken”. 

Responding to queries on Sunday, Steenhuisen told Daily Maverick: “I fully understand that the joke may have been in bad taste to some, but it is important to note that the podcast is a lighthearted and comedic take on current affairs and politics in South Africa where politicians are encouraged to show a lighter side of themselves.” 

Steenhuisen said he “thoroughly enjoyed” his time on the podcast and felt “that it is vital that we use these platforms to break down barriers and talk to each other as South Africans”.

“I think it is more telling that the South African media have chosen to focus on one bad joke, rather than the hour-long discussion around issues facing young black South Africans, which hundreds of thousands of voters actively engaged with from across the country,” he added. 

Daily Maverick understands there is considerable unhappiness among some within the party’s internal structures over Steenhuisen’s comment and his decision to participate in a podcast notorious for misogyny in the first place. 

However, Steenhuisen’s chief of staff, Ryan Smith, said that to his knowledge “there have been no complaints laid against [Steenhuisen] following his comment”.

Podcaster MacG has fostered a reputation as a crude interviewer with a notable disregard for women and the LGBTQI+ community, and a line of questioning that has landed many of his guests in hot water. 

Other politicians, including EFF leader Julius Malema and ANC national spokesperson Pule Mabe, have appeared on the podcast too.

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-02-16-sex-drugs-and-rotten-trolls-celebrity-gossipers-send-digital-standards-down-the-tubes/

Steenhuisen’s remark unleashed a tsunami of backlash on social media, after the DA promoted the clip on Twitter. 

Amid the outrage, there were also many users who lauded the DA leader for his “candidness”.




“As a politician, I am not perfect. I make mistakes, and I may also make bad jokes. I accept that. But what this podcast has shown is that South Africans are clearly desperate to see a more honest, humane and relatable side to our politicians instead of the image that is overly curated by the media and its own agenda,” Steenhuisen told Daily Maverick. 

Speaking to Daily Maverick about the politician’s remarks, professor of political science and SARChI Chair in Gender Politics at Stellenbosch University, Amanda Gouws, said: “Roadkill is something that’s dead, right? So maybe he wishes her – the mother of his children – dead. In a country where there is so much violence against women, a comment like this is not funny, it’s misogynistic.”



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Researcher in gender violence at Wits University Lisa Vetten told Daily Maverick that comparing his ex-wife to roadkill “shows a very high degree of hostility”, and “is dehumanising and aggressive”. 

“To describe someone who is alive in that way, you could say, carries an undertone of wishing they were dead.”

Labelling his comment as nothing more than a “bad joke”, Steenhuisen therefore “likens misogyny to lightheartedness”, Gouws explained. She added that the comments made by social media users who appear to be laughing at Steenhuisen’s “joke”, “shows us how normalised this type of verbal violences is”. 

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2022-08-07-womens-day-2022-just-another-day-on-the-island-of-lord-of-the-flies/

The remark – coming from a politician, the leader of the DA – is “such bad taste and so inappropriate and unacceptable” that Gouws believes it is likely that the party has lost some women voters.

Echoing Gouws’s remarks, director of the Saartjie Baartman Centre for Women and Children Bernadine Bachar said: “It behoves our political leadership to stand firmly and indisputably against misogyny and the harmful values that underpin the patriarchy. The comparison, even in jest, falls far short of standards of responsible and gender-sensitive political leadership.” 

Referring to several examples where Steenhuisen has publicly called out sexism, misogyny and chauvinism, Vetten said his comment makes him a hypocrite. 

The DA leader’s remarks come after the party started a petition calling for Bheki Cele’s resignation as police minister, after he stated during an interview on eNCA that a 19-year-old woman was lucky to be raped by one man, while others had been raped by 10 men – referring to the rape of eight women in Krugersdorp. 

The DA slammed Cele for not apologising for his comment and President Cyril Ramaphosa for not reprimanding him. 

“It is time for the SAPS to be led by a serious and skilled minister – not a clueless, irresponsible misogynist,” the party said. 

Co-founder and co-executive director of Sonke Gender Justice Bafana Khumalo said the organisation is “appalled by the insensitive comments” uttered by the leader of the official opposition.

“This coming from a leader who barely a few days ago launched a campaign against the minister of police who himself had uttered unfortunate statements about rape in the aftermath of the gang rape of eight women in Krugersdorp few weeks ago,” said Khumalo.

Khumalo called on Steenhuisen to apologise for his “senseless commentary” and for his party to hold him accountable. DM

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