So, according to a particular world leader, Africa’s countries are a collective “shithole”. That’s nice, isn’t it?
Since the report broke this morning, US President Donald Trump denied that he “used this language” to describe the continent’s nations, Haiti and El Salvador, but that hasn’t stopped the internet from voicing its opinion on the matter.
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Visit this article for a full explanation on the incident, and reaction from those across the world.
But the shockwaves are only just beginning to be felt in South Africa, with the country’s Twitter users rallying together to celebrate their beautiful shithole.
Africa and the rest of the world showcased the beauty lurking in their ‘shithole’ countries
Late Friday afternoon, the hashtag #MyShithole began trending across the nation. But instead of slating Trump for the comment, South Africans parodied the statement, posting pictures of their woefully ugly nation.
Kazuki Tshabalala posted one of the more popular tweets using the hashtag, looking across Durban’s city centre and harbour. It gained more than 20 responses, 23 likes and seven retweets within five hours.
It also received a retweet from popular political analyst Max du Preez, adding an additional 21 comments, 30 retweets and more than 70 likes to the conversation.
This was enough to propel the hashtag into the timelines of South Africans.
#myshithole @realDonaldTrump
cmon add your shithole pics… pic.twitter.com/W2KVgogi6u— Kazuki Tshabalala (@KazTshabalala) January 12, 2018
Users soon rallied to the call, posting their own pictures. Snaps of Cape Town, the Drakensberg, and Lowveld were all spotted.
bleak view from #myshithole in Africa today #africa #houtbay #chappies #southafrica pic.twitter.com/igtXkWma0u
— Tim Butcher Author (@timbobutcher) January 12, 2018
Hey @realDonaldTrump. You’re right Africa is a beautiful #shithole #myshithole #tala #capetown #countryduty #Mzansi
pic.twitter.com/6sbVVHeEOq — Vishali (@vish_za) January 12, 2018
Hey DT, I don’t mind you, but when you come after my beautiful country, it’s fairgame. Fuck you, Sir and your ignorant statements. #myshithole Cape Town @realDonaldTrump @SouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/XYZe7OfGxe
— Cara Erasmus (@IceyPieDoto) January 12, 2018
Let’s go people. Get #myshithole trending. pic.twitter.com/r8pPVG1NIO
— F. Scott Babcock (@fsbabs) January 12, 2018
#myshithole South Afirca
@RealDonad_Trump #shithead pic.twitter.com/4TXcFPVbbL — Lize Linstrӧm (@LizeLinstrom) January 12, 2018
#myshithole pic for @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/dXYofIE9Fg
— justin rix (@justrixin) January 12, 2018
Hey @realDonaldTrump this is my #myshithole and you’re not welcome here pic.twitter.com/eTEZ5EkZd1
— Ralph Felix Pina (@ralphpina) January 12, 2018
This is #myshithole #Africa #SouthAfrica @sapeople @lovecapetown @CapeTownTourism @realDonaldTrump #justsaying pic.twitter.com/xbuBtJYQH9 — Sonja Delport
(@Edelweiss_Delp) January 12, 2018
The Drakensberg #Bergville #ukhahlamba #kamberg #myshithole courtesy https://t.co/hLp9KlJWaf pic.twitter.com/zvyvfl61fg
— Nkosana Kumalo (@Trusana_nkosana) January 12, 2018
But South Africa wasn’t alone.
The earliest tweet with the hashtag we could find originated from Nairobi, Kenya. Users in other African countries like Ivory Coast and Namibia also contributed.
#Nairobi, Kenya: #MyShithole pic.twitter.com/3SXiiGK81c
— HAGONO (@HAGONOFRANK) January 12, 2018
#myshithole Namibia, Southern Africa or “Nambia”to you @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/4wq4zeZNM7
— Carl Anhaeusser (@kalahari2) January 12, 2018
cc @realDonaldTrump/@POTUS pic.twitter.com/G0fjdCa5xy
— I am an African
(@Clint_ZA) January 12, 2018
This is Cote d’Ivoire in West Africa and Abidjan remains one of the hidden gems. #MyShitHole #ShitholeCountries #Trump pic.twitter.com/JIPGynaHGl
— KhayelihleKhumalo (@KhayaJames) January 12, 2018
Additionally, a number of Haitians also adopted the hashtag.
#FridayFeeling #goodmoning @realDonaldTrump Haiti #myshithole is on my mind. pic.twitter.com/enMQIpeCtL
— Leve Kanpe Ayisyen (@htsistersplace) January 12, 2018
The hashtag continues to trend across South Africa at the time of writing.
