Lunch with Ludy

One of the best spots in Cape Town that I was lucky enough to encounter was the Rainbow Experience. Here, you could read, listen to music, shop, and enjoy a light cafe lunch. When I went to the Rainbow Experience, I didn't expect that I would end up having a very meaningful conversation with Ludwig, or Ludy for short. Ludy is a young white South African man who is a waiter at the Rainbow Experience. My creative piece was about the presence of American culture in South Africa. Tiphanie suggested that I talk to him about the influence of American culture on fashion in South Africa. Although one may believe that fashion is a superficial topic of discussion, it really is not. My conversation with Ludy about fashion turned into a commentary about race.
Throughout my interview with him, Ludy apologized several times for his responses, because he did not want to come off as some "snobbish Afrikaner man." In response to his constant apologies, I told him not to worry. I knew that Ludy was not a racist. Race and its relationship to identity is such a major facet of South African culture.He observed that black South Africans, specifically those who were successful with a good job, a car, etc. often were flashier with their dress. As an example, he talked about a black South African businessman. According to Ludy, this businessman would wear a pin stripe suit, flashy cuff links, and shiny shoes. All of these articles of clothing display wealth in a very bold way. Ludy came to the conclusion that the black South African businessman would choose to dress this way in order to show that he had made it. He was successful. He was no longer oppressed! Basically, it is as if the black businessman has something to prove. He must prove to white South Africa that he too can be successful and on the same level as they are. When we talked about how white South Africans dressed, the observation was the polar opposite. Ludy said that white South Africans had the tendency to be more modest in their way of dress, and not very flashy. Considering the previous comment made about black South Africans, this is very logical. White South Africans do not have anything to prove to anyone. They were the group that was in power, and they did not have to suffer oppression from another racial group. Perhaps the most interesting observation about fashion deals with the Coloreds in South Africa. Historically, the coloreds were wedged between the whites and the blacks. The fact that they were wedged between these two groups led to an identity crisis. Because of this identity crisis, Ludy believes that when it comes to dress, they will mimic what they see on television. For example, colored women may emulate the way that Rihanna dresses or colored men may look to Akon for inspiration.

I never really thought about the relationship between race and fashion in South Africa until I spoke to Ludy. His comments were very insightful and I appreciate the fact that he was very candid with me. I can honestly say that my lunch with Ludy was one of the most meaningful experiences that I had on this trip.