OTHER INCIDENTS OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IN SOUTH AFRICA
Gandhi boarded a train from Maritzburg to Charlestown, to continue his journey after being thrown out of the train at Maritzburg station.
From Charlestown the rest of the journey was in a stagecoach for which Gandhi already had a ticket.
While all the white passengers were made to sit inside the coach, Gandhi was made to sit outside near the driver’s box, a place usually occupied by the ‘leader’ or the white man who was in charge of the coach.
The leader usually sat here but on this day he decided to sit inside.
Gandhi felt very humiliated but decided to do as told because he did not want to delay his journey.
A little while later the leader wanted to smoke and get some fresh air.
So he took a piece of dirty sack-cloth from the driver, spread it on the footboard and told Gandhi to sit on it.
Gandhi refused to do and mustered up the courage to protest.
On this, he was badly beaten up by the leader, until some passengers took pity and allowed Gandhi to sit inside the coach with them.
On reaching Johannesburg, Gandhi found that all the hotels became full the moment he asked for a room for the night.
From Johannesburg to Pretoria Gandhi again took a first class ticket in the train and was told to move to the third-class compartment, but was saved of further humiliation by the intervention of his co-passenger.
On reaching Pretoria Gandhi was able to find a hotel with the help of an African-American, but on the condition that he should dine inside his room and not along with the white people in the dining hall. This condition was later removed with the consent of the other guests.
In another incident, Gandhi refused to remove his Turban though the magistrate of a Durban court ordered him to do so.
Gandhi was kicked by a police officer out of the footpath onto the street without warning, as Indians were not allowed to walk on public footpaths in South Africa.
