SA author refuses to be silenced after being heckled off stage

A South African-born author based in Canada, Kagiso Molope, is urging young people and those in positions of power to speak out against the atrocities they see happening in the world.

The author went viral on social media after being escorted out of an event for speaking out about child casualties in the Gaza Strip.

It’s understood Molope had been invited to give a speech at the prestigious Politics and the Pen event in Canada but was met with animosity from the crowd of some of that country’s most influential people following her utterances.

When she spoke about child casualties, someone shouted that it was Hamas’ fault.

Here is why I got thrown out of @polipenottawa last night. All I can say is: when we enter spaces of great POWER, please let us raise our VOICES pic.twitter.com/F5JrHcZ92p

— KLM🇿🇦🇵🇸 (@kagisokeo) May 8, 2024

During her speech, Molope was repeatedly booed and ultimately heckled off stage.

However, she did not seem too upset at being shown the door, explaining on her way out that she would not want to break bread with people who had no objection to children dying.

I managed to catch up with Molope as she was being escorted from the event. pic.twitter.com/ioz6aMMrPD

— Stuart Benson (@LeftHandStu) May 8, 2024

To date, over 35 000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in the conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups.

Israel has been launching strikes in Rafah, where more than 1.2 million displaced people are now living and are largely reliant on humanitarian aid, as calls for an end to the war intensify. Written by Naomi Kobbie