Eight-in-ten citizens label the struggle-era chant “kill the Boer” as hate speech or irresponsible, uniting voters across lines against rhetoric that threatens social cohesion.

Nearly 80 percent of South Africans consider the chant “kill the Boer” to be hate speech or grossly irresponsible according to a poll conducted by the Social Research Foundation. The condemnation cuts across political identity.

Seventy-two percent of ANC voters, 83 percent of DA voters, and 68 percent of EFF voters want the slogan withdrawn from public rallies. Black respondents, at 74 percent, and white respondents, at 92 percent, share a conviction that violent rhetoric undermines social trust.

The findings underscore how distant politicians are from their own supporters when they defend incendiary struggle songs. Respondents linked such language to an atmosphere of intimidation at community level, harm to the country’s reputation abroad, and had a chilling effect on investment. The majority favour either an outright ban or strong censure under existing equality laws.

And while South Africa’s constitutional settlement guarantees wide-ranging free expression, the same Bill of Rights prohibits advocacy of hatred that incites harm. Voters appear to have internalised that balance. Leaders therefore face a simple test: uphold legal and moral norms or alienate the moderate majority that sustains democracy. Tolerating hate slogans will erode crucial reservoirs of goodwill that the nation cannot afford to squander amid economic strain and social contestation.

Seen through the lens of national unity, the call for a ban on hate slogans reflects South Africa’s broad consensus on the boundaries of acceptable speech in a constitutional democracy.