Former BDS Activist Nkomo Shares Shift in Perspective After Visiting Israel

In 2014, Nkomo made his first visit to Israel, an experience that led him to reassess his previous understanding of the conflict. He shared his journey at the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Cape Town, invited by the South African Union of Jewish Students. Nkomo, a candidate for the provincial legislature of Gauteng, is a former student leader and member of the Wits 11 group, which disrupted an Israeli pianist’s recital in 2013.

Nkomo described his early involvement with the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, where he was influenced by materials that portrayed Israel as an apartheid state and a war zone. He recalled being taught that life in Israel was constantly marked by conflict, with children dying and mass graves being common. This perspective shaped his activism, leading him to participate in protests and boycotts against Israeli engagement.

As a political activist, Nkomo led demonstrations against the conflict, often targeting the South African Union of Jewish Students. He described a hostile environment at Wits University, where his group frequently confronted Jewish students, placing stickers on their doors and yelling at them to stop the oppression. He was taught to boycott anyone associated with Israel, viewing Zionism as inherently racist.

After six months of refusal, Nkomo decided to visit Israel to gain a firsthand understanding of the situation. He described his initial stop in Ramallah, where he found no evidence of the war zone he had been taught to expect. This experience marked a turning point in his perspective, challenging the narratives he had previously accepted.

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