Fears and Anxieties of South Africa
Historical Fear
Anxiety, worry, and fear, these are concepts presented in the Scriptures over 100 times.[1] Microsoft Copilot states that the phrase Fear Not appears 71 times, 57 Old Testament, 14 New Testament.[2] They are normal human emotions, however when they reach certain levels the “reptilian brain takes over.”[3] Edwin Friedman suggests that during this time the cortex can do the bidding of the reptilian brain to the point that “unhealthy ways of thinking and relating” actually intensify.[4]
I believe this helps explain why historically Christians have engaged in policy that serves to reduce their fear and anxieties including those related to a loss of power and status. This I believe can be traced back to what N. T. Wright and Michael Bird call the “Church’s unholy alliance with the Roman Empire.”[5] They write “Christendom did not make the world the kingdom of heaven. Often it was the opposite: it manufactured a merciless hell for many on the margins.”[6] Patti Waldmeir’s book Anatomy of a Miracle suggest that fear and anxiety were the reason behind South African apartheid instituted by Afrikaners, which I would argue created a hell for many citizens.[7] Afrikaners are White descendants of Dutch, French and Germans settlers, who arrived in South Africa during the 1600 and 1700’s; many of whom were Calvinists who believed they were living in a new promised land.[8] In 1902 after a war that lasted just under three years, the British took control of South Africa until South Africa declared its independence in 1961. Waldmeir writes that apartheid actually began in 1948 after the Afrikaner Nationalists won an election. Waldmeir suggests the reason for apartheid was fear.
“White South Africans were a small and declining minority in their country. Afrikaners were terrified that blacks would do what the English had done: render them a subject minority in the land of their birth. Their answer was apartheid. Its aim was to guarantee the prosperity and security of Afrikaners, through white domination.”[9]
Like the United States government did to Native Americans by placing them on reservations, Afrikaners removed black Africans from all but 13% of South African land, forcing between 3 – 4 million people to move.[10] Over the next forty plus years the African National Congress, led by Nelson Mandela and the National Party would butt heads over proposed policy and sometimes even exchange gunfire. Slowly the Afrikaners began to question the morality of apartheid, how to treat the mixed-raced people and how to solve economic issues plaguing the country. Between 1990 and 1993 many talks took place about developing a new South African government. In November 1993 a new temporary constitution was agreed up and an April 1994 election date had been determined. During this same time and leading up to the election, fear and anxiety continued to show itself including the National Party resistance in giving up its rule to a simple majority vote and a massacre of 45 Africans on July 17, 1992.
Fourteen years after the advent of the new South Africa fear was still a dominant emotion in the country. Alec Russel writes that Desmond Tutu commented in 2008 that whites and blacks still reside in two different worlds.[11] This was evident at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The vice chancellor, Malegapuru Makgoba talked about how suspicion and fear between white, African, and Indian students kept them segregated.[12] Russell also talked about how African workers were forbidden by white workers to talk in their African language because “’they are afraid we are talking about them.’”[13]
South Africa Today
In preparation of our upcoming trip to Cape Town, I wondered if the fear and anxiety levels have improved since it has been thirty years since apartheid. I asked Microsoft Copilot about fear in South Africa today. Here is its visual response[14]
I was also led to two resources that express the levels of fear and anxiety in South Africa today. First, Nicky Falkof’s 2022 book titled Worrier State: Risk, anxiety and moral panic in South Africa details how a “pervasive culture of fear” often highlighted by the media impacts life and meaning for people throughout South Africa.[15] Secondly, just published in May 2025, Vusi Shongwe writes “Today, South Africa is engulfed in anxiety, fear, and uncertainty.”[16] This fear is also evident in the 67,042 South African requests for resettlement in the United States as refugees.[17]
Have fear and anxiety reached levels in South Africa where the cortex is doing the bidding of the reptilian brain? Besides fleeing the country in fear how are South Africans dealing with their fears and anxieties. A more important question might be what are South African leaders doing to address the root causes of the fear and anxiety? I am excited to journey to Cape Town, to interact with South Africans and hear from leaders about how they picture the future of the nation and how they believe the nation’s fears and anxieties should be addressed.
[1] Amanda Williams, “How Many Times Is Anxiety Mentioned In The Bible?” Christian Website, January 14, 2024, https://www.christianwebsite.com/how-many-times-is-anxiety-mentioned-in-the-bible/.
[2] Microsoft Copilot, “How Many Times Does The Bible Say Fear Not? September 11, 2025.
[3] Edwin H. Friedman, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix, (New York: Seabury Books, 2007), 121.
[4] Friedman, 121.
[5] N.T. Wright and Michael Bird, Jesus and the Powers: Christian Political Witness in an Age of Totalitarian Terror and Dysfunctional Democracies, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2024), 30.
[6] Wright and Bird, 31.
[7] Patti Waldmeir, Anatomy of a Miracle: The End of Apartheid and the Birth of the New South Africa, (New York: Norton, 1997).
[8] Waldmeir, xii; Holland, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind, (London, UK:Little Brown, 2019).
[9] Waldmeir, 10.
[10] Waldmeir, 11.
[11] Alec Russell, After Mandela: The Battle for the Soul of South Africa, (London: Windmill, 2009), 43.
[12] Russell, 44-45.
[13] Russell, 43.
[14] Microsoft Copilot “What are the main fears and anxieties expressed in the people of South Africa today?” September 12, 2025.
[15] Wits University Press, Worrier State: Risk, anxiety and moral panic in South Africa, (Johannesburg: Wits University Press, 2022). https://witspress.co.za/page/detail/Worrier-State/?K=9781776147885
[16] Vusi Shongwe, “Facing hard truths: South Africa’s anxiety and the need for leadership,” Sunday Independent, May 20, 2025, https://sundayindependent.co.za/dispatch/2025-05-20-facing-hard-truths-south-africas-anxiety-and-the-need-for-leadership/
[17] SA Chamber USA, “News: SACCUSA Hands Over Details of 67,000 South Africans to U.S. Embassy for Refugee Resettlement Request – SA Chamber USA,” March 19, 2025, https://sachamberusa.com/saccusa-hands-over-details-of-67000-south-africans-to-u-s-embassy-for-refugee-resettlement-request/
About the Author
Jeff Styer
Jeff Styer lives in Northeast Ohio's Amish Country. He has degrees in Social Work and Psychology and currently works as a professor of social work at Mount Vernon Nazarene University. Jeff is married to his wife, Veronica, 25+ years. Together they have 4 beautiful children (to be honest, Jeff has 4 kids, Veronica says she is raising 5). Jeff loves the outdoors, including biking, hiking, camping, birding, and recently picked up disc golf.15 responses to “Fears and Anxieties of South Africa”
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Hey buddy. Thanks for connecting Friedman’s idea of the ‘reptilian brain’ with the way fear has shaped both apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa. From your perspective, what practices, spiritual, cultural, or political, can help leaders resist fear-driven reactions and instead cultivate courageous, hope-filled leadership?
Glynn,
Asa Christian an obvious practice is spiritual, focusing on God’s faithfulness and the promises found in His word. However, for those who are not Christian, one practice for leaders would be to assess the situation (what is heard in the news, statistical data, etc.) with trusted, knowledgeable, advisors, looking for the truth and exceptions to what has been presented. I’m thinking of some of the thinking errors we encountered in our readings the first semester with Dr. Clark. Taking time to really assess things helps slow us down and decrease presence of the reptile living within.
Hey Jeff,
Thanks for bringing in the perspectives of Nicky Falkof and Vusi Shongwe on the fear, anxiety, and uncertainty so many South Africans are living with. I also really liked your question, “What are South African leaders doing to address the root causes of this fear and anxiety?”—it’s something a lot of us are wondering about in today’s world. What do you think is driving both the widespread sense of fear inside the country and the rising number of South Africans applying for refugee status in the U.S.? And did any of those reasons catch you by surprise?
Elysee,
Reading the one article it seems that a distrust in the leadership is one of the main causes. The leadership is self-centered and party-centered and not focused on the nation as a whole. I actually saw similarities to the US and while we don’t have the violence and unemployment they do, I wondered why they want to come to the US knowing the fracturing of our nation that is occurring
Hi Jeff, while many historical movements focus on the leaders, I often wonder about the everyday folks, especially regarding the holocaust era. How much did they know? Didn’t they see the signs, etc.?
Your question about whether fear and anxiety persist in South Africa all these years later makes sense. In thinking ahead about the trip to Cape Town, have you given much thought to the questions you may want to ask someone who has lived through apartheid or perhaps the younger generation coming in its wake? If yes, what would you like to learn from them?
Jennifer, I just read the bio of the speakers that we get to hear from. I am excited. This may sound strange but I am looking forward to hearing from Mr. Christo van de Rheede. I am interested in his work with agriculture and how they are building and maintaining the interest in farming in the younger generation. It sounds like there has been a lot of violence directed toward farmers due to their isolation. So with a fear of violence looming in one’s mind in addition to being at the mercy of the weather, how do you get people into farming
Hi Jeff,
You note that fear and anxiety still shape South African society today—what is one learning from this that you’d like to impart to some of your students?
Christy, I think some of the fear that exists is still fear of the “other.” I want my students to keep in mind what types of behaviors can occur when we fear others excessively, such as violence, and focusing only on the needs of our own group. I also want them to remember that we are not as different as we think we are.
Jeff,
Good thoughts on fear and anxiety. I visited Cape Town six years ago and there was a very real fear of drought at the time. Water rationing was very strict and the city only had a few weeks worth of water remaining at the time. I assume it is a little better now as I haven’t heard about the issue for a time. But, It is interesting to think through the complex societal issues alongside the racial apartheid issues.
Adam,
I remember in the news the countdown to Day Zero. Looking online, it appears that the drought broke in 2018 and the dam that was their major source of water reached 95% full in 2020. I sometimes wonder how water access will impact the future in our country. I’ve heard it suggest that wars in the future will be fought over water.
Hi Jeff, thank you for your post.
Do you think that fear is the only role that played a big part in the history of apartheid or control?
Shela,
Ultimately no, I’m sure there were plenty of other factors that were involved, but the fear of the future and loss of power fueled some of the other factors.
Jeff, as I read your blog the verse in 1 John 4:18 kept coming to mind, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love (NIV).”
If you were a social worker in South Africa, from the list of “core anxieties,” which would you prioritize and why?
Kari,
If you are referring to the three core anxieties identified by Albert Ellis, then I would focus on discomfort anxiety. I would probably focus more on Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, which ultimately provide comfort. As a social worker I need to ensure that people have access for the survival needs of safety, shelter, and sustenance. With the amount of violence and unemployment in the country these have to be addressed.
Jeff! I love how you captured the fear and anxiety component alongside the apartheid narrative. How do you believe the South African government can improve this mental and emotional bondage that captivates so many?