Elon Musk's mother lashes out at NYT article. Here's why
Elon Musk's mother has condemned an article in The New York Times that said the entrepreneur enjoyed "white privilege" during the apartheid era in South Africa. And that he was "sheltered" from its atrocities. Maye Musk, protesting against that piece on Twitter, a platform her son has now taken over, asked the publication to not "blame children for decisions made by governments."
- Musk was born and raised in Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa. The tech billionaire shifted to Canada when he was 17-18. And, the apartheid existed from 1948 until the early 1990s.
- So, Musk was in South Africa throughout the dark times.
- Notably, he has always criticized the apartheid and his father also maintained "Musk and his siblings were fully aware of the horrors of apartheid."
Elon Musk grew up in elite white communities in South Africa, detached from apartheid’s atrocities and surrounded by anti-Black propaganda.
— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 5, 2022
He sees his takeover of Twitter as a free speech win but in his youth did not suffer the effects of misinformation. https://t.co/bciCJDWGGP
The publication tweeted, "Elon Musk grew up in elite white communities in South Africa, detached from apartheid's atrocities and surrounded by anti-Black propaganda," while promoting the article. "He sees his takeover of Twitter as a free speech win but in his youth did not suffer the effects of misinformation," it added, hinting at Musk's first tweet on free speech after taking over Twitter.
The viral article titled Elon Musk Left a South Africa That Was Rife With Misinformation and White Privilege also included quotes from Musk's old classmates and relatives who revealed that they were misinformed about what went on. It also claimed that Johannesburg, Pretoria (where Musk was born and grew up), and Durban were suppressed by the racist propaganda of the then government.
Snapping back, Maye wrote, "In South Africa, if you publicly opposed apartheid, you went to jail." "In Russia, if you publicly oppose the war, you go to jail. @nytimes, are you going to blame children for decisions made by governments?" she lashed out. Even her ex-husband, Musk's father emphasized, "As far as being sheltered from it, that's nonsense...They were confronted by it every day."
