On September 3, Gogo Skhotheni announced on her social media platforms that her son, Monde Shange Jr, 3, has died died. However, she recently shared a video on Tiktok and Instagram to say she’s already back at work.
This sparked mixed reactions from her followers, with some supporting her decision to go back to work, while others questioned why she is rushing back to work and not mourning the death of her son, who was born premature, and with serious birth defects.
Her followers shared that they feel as though she is not mourning the death of her son properly, and she should be focusing on healing, instead of working.
Tiktok user @Latifahnonti commented, “Gone are the days when people mourn.”
Tiktok user @layietapela commented, “The honest truth is that we are a lost generation that does not see anything wrong with things that are so wrong.”
Instagram user @kittysiyanga commented, “Guys, don’t you think that if she doesn’t mourn now, it will haunt her in the future? We can say we heal in different ways, but the passing of loves ones is something different.”
Other followers disagreed, sharing that she must work and life goes on.
Tiktok user @Wtf_Khumo commented, “Yoh, bills must be paid, she must work, you are all shocked like corporate does not give you only 5 days to mourn.”
Another Tiktok user @Sweedy_Melanin_Moloi commented, “Aa bathong, life goes if she sits on the mattress for months who is going to pay her bills?”
Instagram user @selema_ka_patla commented, “I think she healed when the baby was still sick. The child was in and out of hospital for two consecutive years, it was not easy for her.”
In many South African cultures, there must be a period of mourning for people who have recently lost a loved one.
For married women, they are given a year to mourn their husbands. While for men, the time period is usually six months.
For parents, there is no standard timeline, they are the ones who decide how long they choose to grieve the loss of their child.
However, due to the evolving times and the modernisation of cultures, people choose to mourn differently because healing and mourning is not a linear journey.