Xenophobia DICTIONARY

The first time I had ever witnessed xenophobia, and its
effects, was in 2015 when I was in Grade 6. My initial
reaction was of utter horror and disgust and ultimately
sadness as I saw my peers’ lives change dramatically. I saw
my best friend’s family business shut down and their
family live in fear. So much was going on and I had no idea
what to think of it.
Some context
Xenophobic violence has been happening in South Africa
since before 2000. In 1995, “Buyelekhaya” (go back home)
campaigns were held where locals blamed foreign nationals
for the spread of AIDS, sexual violence, crime and a lack of
jobs and tried to drive them out of the country.
May 2008 brought riots in the township of Alexandra,
where locals attacked immigrants from Zimbabwe,
Mozambique and Malawi, leaving several injured and dead.