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Protest against 'mind traps of the wealthy'

A 21-YEAR-OLD Umhlanga resident is causing a stir in the up-market suburb by dressing up in a controversial white supremacist Klu Klux Klan suit and making his views known.

Charlie Manner, who is fluent in Zulu, has said he was protesting against what he called the "mind traps of the wealthy and middle class".

Admitting that he too fell into this bracket, Manner said his aim was to get people to think about the materialistic world in which people from Durban's wealthiest suburbs, such as Umhlanga, La Lucia and Durban North, lived.

"I am protesting against anything that limits self-expression, like TV, which makes us want to buy this and that product."

Call him loony - but Manner's antics are attracting a lot of attention.

Standing on the busy Umhlanga Rocks Drive, several cars subjected him to blaring hooters, stopped to take photos or showed him the middle finger.

He even attracted the attention of the local police, who tried to arrest him.

On why he as a black person chose to parade in a KKK suit, Manner said: "It's the irony of it all. The KKK is a symbol of religious bigotry or a religious mind trap, just like the architects of apartheid justified using religion to do what they wanted."

Manner, who calls himself a performance artist, said he began his mission on September 11 and made himself seen on the Umhlanga Ridge that houses multi-million rand companies that include Multichoice and Alexander Forbes.

"I walk up and down in this outfit made of hard paper and material for up to six hours a day.

"Some people are confused because they don't know what I am doing. Many stop to ask me and I explain. We live with so many trappings."

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