Toya Delazy Calls Out South Africans for Using Slurs Against Foreign Nationals Online

• Toya Delazy weighed in on a brewing online clash between South Africans and other African nationalities on X
• The musician argued that South Africans have the worst online etiquette, singling out Zulu users specifically
• Her post backfired when users challenged her to also address the anti-South African insults thrown by other Africans

South African musician Toya Delazy sparked a heated conversation on X after wading into an ongoing online feud between South Africans and users from other African countries, only to find herself on the back foot.

On 5 October 2026, Delazy posted her take on what she described as poor online behaviour from her compatriots. "Name another country that has terrible online etiquette - I honestly think we have the worst online etiquette 🇿🇦… The whole world agrees, I'm sure. There are very few people alive that haven't been insulted by Zulus online. I think this year we normalised swear words," she wrote.

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The post did not land the way she may have hoped.

Toya doubles down on slur debate

Several users pushed back, pointing out that the online hostility runs in both directions and that South Africans are also frequently targeted by foreign nationals on the platform. When @Success5__ challenged her directly, asking, "So you don't see the unprovoked insults from fellow Africans towards South Africans?", Delazy shifted the conversation to the root of the problem: the derogatory terms South Africans use against foreign nationals.

"Who started calling the others? These are not nicknames. They are slurs. Words made to strip away humanity," she responded.

Her defence did little to calm the debate, with many users feeling she was deflecting rather than acknowledging the full picture.

Check out Toya's post below:

Netizens challenge Toya's words

The post drew sharp responses from both South Africans and users across the continent:

@Wacuka_Dawns wrote: "I CANNOT believe South Africans are playing victim on this app that KEEPS ALL THE RECORDS and never ever forgets 😳😳😳😳"

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@nkosib1 said: "A person who can reduce another human being like that doesn't value humanity. They will probably kill you like an animal. I would be careful around someone who can throw around such slurs. What's inside of them is vile"

@whoareweeven16 pushed back on Delazy's argument: "You've been calling us HIV gang way before those words were formed. And what is wrong with Zai zai? Kwerekwere did not originate from being used by foreigners. It was referring to when you don't understand what language a person is speaking, no matter where they are from, including SA"

@ChrisAzola offered a darker prediction: "When they finally come for South Africans, no African will be on the South African side, I swear."

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Source: Briefly News