The Future of South Africa Lies With Equal Education

For a report on the new South Africa, Scott Kraft devotes only one three-sentence paragraph to education (“After the Fire,” Sept. 11). South Africa’s first democratic election in 1994 led to one of the most progressive constitutions in the free world. It made educational equity a major national priority.

Yet despite the creation of a race-blind state educational system and the elevation of basic education to a fundamental right, South Africa has made painfully little progress toward this vital goal. Equal educational opportunities for blacks who are not part of the growing black middle class are still not a reality. Without substantial funding over a protracted time frame, it’s highly unlikely that matters will change. If social justice is a prerequisite for harmonious race relations, the failure to fulfill the nation’s promise in education does not bode well for the future of Afrikaners in the overwhelmingly black nation.

Walt Gardner

Los Angeles