Under authoritarian rule, not everyone will choose to submit to survive. The movie Goodbye Bafana tells such a story. Before the 1990s, South Africa implemented a policy of apartheid. Blacks are in the position of being oppressed by whites. Of course, for the white populace, their superiority over blacks was earned by bowing to the white authoritarian government. Under authoritarian regimes, their freedom and equality are also threatened. Their willingness to believe in the dogma of apartheid stems both from their selfishness and their sense of powerlessness over the status quo. But there is no shortage of fighters among the fearful masses. The two male protagonists of the film are representative of them. The representative of black people is the famous Nelson Mandela. He began to lead the affirmative movement of black South Africans very early and was imprisoned for a long time by the brutal South African authorities.
Another protagonist, Gregory, is a representative of white people. He is a prison guard in charge of Mandela Prison. Initially, he too was a credulous believer in the myth of apartheid in South Africa. However, in his encounter with Mandela, after observing reality, he began to change his perspective. He risked going to the library to borrow Mandela's "Charter of Freedom". He understood Mandela's feelings for his wife and was willing to help Mandela pass the chocolate to his wife. He became Mandela's friend and tried to help Mandela as much as possible within the system. Gregory's actions may be small compared to Mandela's greatness, but compared to other people in the system, Gregory is great. Because he maintained a humane and kind heart in a dirty environment and maintained a rational judgment in a lie. He did not sell all his morals to survive, he loved his family, but would never sully morals for the sake of the family. He was wronged, he was strong and principled. Maybe most people can't be a fighter against the system, but they should learn how to be a sympathizer within the system. After all, this is the bottom line of morality.
View more about Goodbye Bafana reviews
