“This Girl Get It”: Tourist’s Scathing Review of Cape Town Exposes Racial and Economic Divides
- A tourist staying in Green Point, Cape Town, posted a TikTok calling out the city's deep racial and economic divides hidden behind its scenic image
- The creator visited a township and spoke with a local vendor about Ubuntu, but argued true solidarity requires land and systemic restorative justice
- South Africans online backed her observations, with many saying Cape Town feels more racially segregated than other cities like Johannesburg
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Source: TikTok
A tourist visiting Cape Town took to TikTok on 16 October 2026 to share a deeply critical take on the city. TikTok user @oumnia_boualam was staying in Green Point when she began documenting what she described as a jarring gap between Cape Town's polished reputation and its lived realities.
In her video, she pointed to statues of Cecil Rhodes still standing in the city and described observing a daily pattern that unsettled her: affluent residents jogging through well-kept neighbourhoods while black workers commuted on foot alongside them. For her, the contrast was impossible to ignore.
Ubuntu without land
Her visit to a local township deepened her thinking. There, she spoke with a vendor about Ubuntu, the African philosophy of communal humanity and shared dignity. While she found the spirit of kindness genuine and admirable, she pushed back on the idea that it was enough on its own. In her view, real solidarity and community cannot flourish without land ownership and systemic restorative justice to address historical wrongs.
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The video resonated widely, particularly among South Africans who felt she had named something many locals navigate daily but rarely see acknowledged openly.
Watch the TikTok video that sparked the conversation here.
Source: Getty Images
Mzansi weighs in on Cape Town
The video drew many South Africans into what they said was a long-overdue conversation about whether Cape Town's global image as a world-class destination papers over inequalities that remain deeply rooted in the city's everyday life. Commenters were largely in agreement with her assessment:
@shov_lam wrote:
"I'm from Joburg, and when I went to Cape Town for the first time, I was like, why are there so many white people 🤔? It feels so racist in Cape Town. At restaurants, it was just white people; it felt really strange."
@DMarie added:
"My son noticed right away when visiting Cape Town."
@apobangpo-is-dead shared:
"Keep exposing this, thank you 👏."
@geejayboy29 commented:
"This girl gets it! A lot of Capetonians should learn from her."
@Fickie wrote:
"🙏🏾 Expose the racism that still exists in South Africa. People are delusional, thinking racism no longer exists because Springboks won two World Cups with a black captain."
@Luyanda said:
"I hate when they say 'things were better in apartheid'; for whom? The audacity, but of course when you're privileged."
Other Cape Town-related articles
- A Japanese creator named Misaki moved to South Africa after taking a bold leap of faith to relocate to Cape Town alone following a job offer from the city.
- Khayelitsha-born eco-warrior Hlombe Ndzube was officially crowned Miss Earth South Africa 2026, earning the opportunity to represent the nation on the global stage in the Philippines.
- Briefly News reported that a tourist praised Cape Town’s scenery while criticising the quality of its restaurant food, sparking a massive online debate.
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Source: Briefly News
