“Can Never Be Me”: Mzansi Left Stunned As Gender Norms Are Shattered at Eastern Cape Funeral

• A TikTok video filmed at a funeral in the Eastern Cape showed women pushing soil back into a grave to cover a coffin
• The act broke a long-standing cultural norm that reserves this graveside task for men in many Xhosa and Sotho communities
• South Africans flooded the comments section, with many saying they could never take on the same task themselves

A TikTok video showing women pushing soil into a grave at a funeral has left Mzansi social media users stunned. TikToker @mimza43 shared the clip, and it quickly spread across the platform.

The footage shows a group of women standing at the graveside, using their hands and feet to push soil back over a coffin. According to comments on the post, the funeral took place in Sterkspruit, Eastern Cape.

Gender norms shattered at funeral

In many Xhosa and Sotho communities, covering a grave after a burial is traditionally a male responsibility. Young men usually handle the task early on the morning of a burial, while women are often expected to keep their distance from the graveside altogether. The practice ties into wider funeral roles, where men dig graves and carry coffins, while women prepare food and support grieving families.

Read also

“Are they African American now?”: SA refugees reunite with pet in US, Mzansi reacts

That is what made the clip stand out to so many viewers. The women stepped fully into a role rarely filmed on camera, and it sparked a wave of reactions.

One commenter on @mimza43's post joked that the same thing happens often in their own hometown. Another admitted the job could never be theirs, adding a laughing emoji for effect. Several other viewers weighed in with their own takes on the moment, turning the comments section into a lively debate.

Watch the burial in the TikTok video below:

More stories involving burials and funerals

• A Tswana woman, the only Muslim in her family, shared how her religion conducts burials, detailing the quick, simple process that occurs on the same day as death.
• A Ghanaian priest fainted and fell into an open grave during a burial service, landing directly on the coffin inside.
• Women at a Gauteng funeral danced to Bacardi music beside the coffin while mourners cheered them on.

Source: Briefly News