Born in 1943, acclaimed South African actor, writer and director John Kani lost an eye in a racially motivated attack.
Kani, famous for roles as King T'Chaka (Black Panther’s dad) in the Marvel films Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Black Panther (2018) and as the voice of Rafiki in the 2019 live-action remake of The Lion King, was active in his home country’s anti-apartheid struggle in the 1980s. After appearing in the play Miss Julie in Cape Town in 1985, during which he became the first Black actor to kiss a white woman on stage, half the audience walked out and he received numerous death threats. Shortly after, he received a phone call saying his father wanted to see him. On his way there, Kani was surrounded and attacked by the police. He was left with 11 stab wounds and lost his eye.
Looking back on his fight against the racist regime, Kani told the Evening Standard the pain was worth it. “Losing my eye was worth it, surviving death was worth it, even losing my brother and my uncle to that struggle was worth it because I am standing here today as a member of the free societies of the world. I may be poor, and poorer than before, but I have been given something that cannot be taken away from me: my dignity.”
