Actress Lorcia Cooper is taking heat on TikTok for an old interview that resurfaced

August 24, 2021

In the clip, she talks about why she doesn’t want to learn African languages.

Lorcia Cooper, a local actress, became known after she scored a role in a production called “Lockdown”. Now, she is under heavy fire after a 4-year-old interview of her has resurfaced. 

In the TikTok clip of the interview, Cooper was asked about the challenges she faces as a coloured person in South Africa. She said that representation is a huge problem and that she feels enough is not being done to bring more diversity into South African entertainment.

“Being coloured in South Africa isn’t the easiest thing…I mean you can watch TV, you can pause the PVR and there’s not one coloured performer on that show.”

The controversial part of the interview is when she said that she has considered learning to speak an African language. “Someone once said to me, ’why don’t you learn to speak (isi)Zulu or why don’t you learn to speak (Se)Tswana?’”

She said that this statement bothered her because it would be “like the oppressor asking you to speak English”. She said that fundamentally, this would force her to change an element of herself to get booked for a job, which she does not agree with.

“So I’m gonna be a coloured woman speaking Zulu so when you look away from the screen I really could be black isn’t it…I would say the most different thing to be right now is coloured in this country.’”

@coloured24sev7n

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♬ original sound – Coloured24Sev7n

TikTok users were outraged and naturally took to the comment section to voice their (strong opinions).

“Lol that would be like the oppressor?? That’s a lie and an excuse learning other languages doesn’t take anything away from you,” said @ndumi.kh.

“An African learning other African languages is oppressive ,” said @setsoh.

“A colored person finding comfort in communicating in the oppressors language and yet equates her motherland’s languages as that of the oppressor……” said @mwa365.

Cooper has not yet made any public statements about the old interview.