👉 In this episode of Bookkast – Bestsellers in Minutes, we dive deep into Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah.
📖 Born a Crime is not just a memoir — it's a powerful, witty, and emotional journey through Trevor Noah’s upbringing during the harsh apartheid regime in South Africa. In this summary, we unpack his incredible story of being literally "born a crime," with a Black Xhosa mother and a White Swiss father in a country where interracial relationships were illegal.
🌍 Trevor’s childhood was filled with contradictions: navigating racism, tribal divisions, poverty, faith, humor, and survival — all while trying to find his place in a divided world. From being thrown out of a moving minibus to witnessing street violence and overcoming domestic abuse in his family, his story is both heartbreaking and inspiring.
✨ Key takeaways from this episode include:
The meaning behind the title Born a Crime
Trevor’s complex relationship with his mother, a woman of resilience and unshakeable faith
The impact of apartheid laws and the brutal reality of growing up “illegal”
How language became Trevor’s secret weapon to adapt and survive His entrepreneurial spirit, humor, and early business hustles in South African townships
The near-miraculous survival of his mother after a gunshot wound
😂 Despite the darkness, Trevor Noah finds humor in the most challenging situations — making this book not only an insightful read but an uplifting and unforgettable one.
👉 If you’re looking for a gripping, emotional, and sometimes hilarious memoir that teaches resilience, adaptability, and hope — this is a must-listen.
🎧 Subscribe to Bookkast for more bestsellers in minutes!
📖 Born a Crime is not just a memoir — it's a powerful, witty, and emotional journey through Trevor Noah’s upbringing during the harsh apartheid regime in South Africa. In this summary, we unpack his incredible story of being literally "born a crime," with a Black Xhosa mother and a White Swiss father in a country where interracial relationships were illegal.
🌍 Trevor’s childhood was filled with contradictions: navigating racism, tribal divisions, poverty, faith, humor, and survival — all while trying to find his place in a divided world. From being thrown out of a moving minibus to witnessing street violence and overcoming domestic abuse in his family, his story is both heartbreaking and inspiring.
✨ Key takeaways from this episode include:
The meaning behind the title Born a Crime
Trevor’s complex relationship with his mother, a woman of resilience and unshakeable faith
The impact of apartheid laws and the brutal reality of growing up “illegal”
How language became Trevor’s secret weapon to adapt and survive His entrepreneurial spirit, humor, and early business hustles in South African townships
The near-miraculous survival of his mother after a gunshot wound
😂 Despite the darkness, Trevor Noah finds humor in the most challenging situations — making this book not only an insightful read but an uplifting and unforgettable one.
👉 If you’re looking for a gripping, emotional, and sometimes hilarious memoir that teaches resilience, adaptability, and hope — this is a must-listen.
🎧 Subscribe to Bookkast for more bestsellers in minutes!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey everyone, and welcome back to book Cast, where we
bring you the best sellers in minutes. I'm Sarah and
I'm Paul, and today we're diving deep into Born a Crime.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Oh, Born a Crime, Yeah, by Trevor Noah. This book
has been like a massive bestseller.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Oh yeah, it's been huge for years now, years and years.
What makes this book so captivating?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I think it's just an incredible story. Yeah, you know,
it gives you a first hand look at growing up
in South Africa during and after apartheid. Absolutely, and Noah's
experiences are just so eye opening.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Often really funny, sometimes heartbreaking, and always thought provoking.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
It really makes you think. Yeah, so we're going to
unpack some of the most fascinating and insightful moments from
Born a Crime, focusing on his childhood and youth.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Let's get to it.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Let's do it. So Born a Crime, even the title
is kind of striking.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
It hits you hard. It does like you were explaining
how Trevor's very existence was actually against the law.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Yeah. So, apartheid in South Africa had these laws called
the Immorality Act, the Immorality Act, and these laws outlawed
inter racial relationships. So his parents exactly. So his parents
broke the law. Yeah, and if you were caught, you
could face up to four years in prison.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Four years just for being in love.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Yeah, for having a relationship with someone of a different race.
And so Trevor's parents, you know, a white Swiss father,
a blackest host a mother a crime. Yeah, he was
literally born a crime according to their laws. And it
wasn't just about preventing relationships. This act created like this
constant fear, this secrecy. Oh yeah, that really impacted families
(01:32):
like Trevor's.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Right, because it's not like they could be open about it.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Oho.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
It was like a secret society, you know, they had.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
To keep it quiet. It must have been so stressful, definitely,
and for Trevor, like it made his existence a source
of anxiety just for being alive. And this was all
part of a bigger strategy by the apartheid government to
maintain control, to.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Control people through fear and division.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Yeah. So apartheid wasn't just about racial segregation. It was
also about creating distrust and animosity between different black ethnic groups.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
So it's like they were turning people against each other exactly.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
And they did this through propaganda, through controlling resources, really
trying to make sure that there wasn't a united front
against the white minority.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
So a part hate, as the book calls it.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
A part hate, such a good term for it.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
It really sums it up.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
And these divisions, unfortunately, had consequences that lasted even after
apartheid ended.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Oh yeah, the book talks about some really intense conflicts.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yeah, like the end of apartheid and the release of
Mandela were huge steps forward, but after decades of this
engineered division race, there were these deep scars that remained,
like the power struggles between groups like the Zulu and
the Exosa, which were amplified after the old regime fell.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
And it led to so much violence.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
Oh, it was horrific. Yeah, you know, there's this practice
of necklacing, where people were burned alive with tires around
their necks.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Oh, it is awful.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Trevor actually writes about seeing a charred body on his
way to school. It's a really disturbing image.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
It really shows the brutality of that time.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Yeah, and in the midst of all this societal turmoil,
you have Trevor trying to figure out his own identity,
starting with his very birth right.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
He was born into a world where his parents' relationship
was a dangerous secret.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
Yeah, and to protect his father, his name wasn't even
on Trevor's birth certificate.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
So he's growing up and his experience is so.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Fragmented, living in different places.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
Different places. He lived illegally in white areas like Hillbrow
with his mother, than in Soweto with his grandmother, and
later in eden Park, which was designated as a colored area.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
And in each of these places he was an outsider totally.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
In white areas, his skin color made him stand out.
In Souetto his lighter complexion made him different, and even
eden Park, where he might have physically blended in more,
his upbringing and his mother's influence set him apart.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
It's like he never really fit in anywhere exactly.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
He was constantly navigating these different worlds and trying to
find his place. And speaking of his mother, she sounds
like an incredible woman.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Oh, she's definitely a force of nature.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
The book really highlights her deep religious faith.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Oh, she was deeply religious.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Like she would go to multiple church services every Sunday,
a white church, a black church, sometimes a mixed congregation.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
And the book draws a really interesting contrast between these services.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Yeah, like the White church was brief efficient, almost like
a business transaction in and out, whereas the Black church,
often held outdoors, would go on for hours with singing
in prayer and this real sense of community.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
It's more emotional.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
And she had this explanation that black people needed more
time with Jesus because they had endured more suffering.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Do that makes sense in a way?
Speaker 1 (04:39):
It does. And her faith wasn't just something for Sundays.
It was this active, unwavering belief that she could overcome
any obstacle.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Like the story about their constantly breaking down VW.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Beetle Yeah, that car was always falling apart. Oh it
was a lemon, but she never saw it as a defeat. No,
it was just the devil trying to stop them from going.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
To church, an obstacle to to overcome.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
And even when the car broke down, she would insist
on taking the minibuses.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Which were not always reliable.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
No, those minibusses were kind of a wild ride. There's
actually a pretty harrowing story about them being thrown off
a minibus.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Oh yeah, tell me about that.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
So they're on this minibus and the driver gets angry
because he sees Trevor's mother had been in a car
with another man earlier, and because she was speaking exosa.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
So tribalism and sexism.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
All mixed into one, and the situation escalates to the
point where they're forcibly removed from the minibus. Wow, and
the drivers just yelling abuse at them.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
That's scary.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
It was a really dangerous situation.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
But through it all, Trevor's mother never gave up.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
No, she was determined to get to church, and that
determination is something she instilled in Trevor.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
She famously raised him like a white kid.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yes, what did that mean exactly?
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Well, it meant raising him with the belief that the
world was full of possibilities for him, that his opinions mattered,
and that he could achieve anything he set his mind to.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Like encouraging him to speak his mind, think critically, exact
sent which was so different from how many black children
were raised at the time.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
Right They were often told to keep their heads down
and not cause trouble.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
And there are these great stories in the book that
show her resilience and her ability to find humor in
difficult situations, like.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
The Mulberry Juice incident.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Oh yeah, tell me that one so young Trevor gets
into a fight with some kids and comes home covered
in mulberry juice. You had to doe, And instead of
getting upset, his mother burst out laughing and says, now
you really are half black and half white.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
She had a great sense of humor, Oh she did.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
And it's that ability to find the funny side of
things that really helped them through tough times.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
And her approach to discipline was also interesting.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Yeah. She had clear boundaries and always explained the reason.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
For the punishment, so it wasn't arbitrary.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
No, it was always about teaching him a lesson, and
then right after the punishment, she'd be back to being
warm and loving, back to normal, like nothing had happened.
It created the sense of security for Trevor, even within
the context of discipline.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
And she always stood up for him, even against authority
figures like at his Catholic school.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Oh yeah, she was his biggest advocate.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
Like when he was punished for wanting to participate in
the euterist.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
Or when he was laughing while being physically.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Disciplined, which is a natural reaction for some people.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
It was a nervous laugh but the school didn't.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
Understand that, and his mother wasn't having it.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
No, she went straight to the principle and basically told
them that they didn't have to hit a child properly
if he was laughing during the punishment.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
She was fierce.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Oh yeah, she was not afraid to speak her mind.
And then there's the demon incident.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Oh yes, the indoor urination during the storm.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
It's such a funny story, but it also shows the
blend of cultural beliefs that his mother held.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
Explain that a little bit.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
So there's a huge storm and young Trevor, instead of
going to the outhouse, peas in the house inside and
his grandmother finds out, and his mother immediately thinks it's witchcraft.
A demon in the.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
House, a demon.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
So they had this whole ritual burning the evidence on
the drive way, with prayers and hymns.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
It's a really interesting mix of traditional African beliefs and
her Christian faith.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
Yeah, it shows how these different belief systems were intertwined
in their lives. And another big theme in Born a
Crime is the power of language.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Language was crucial for Trevor.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
Absolutely. He realized early on that being able to speak
someone's language could break down barriers color exactly. He became
fluent in Zulu, Exosa, Swana, all these different.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Languages, a true polyglot.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
It allowed him to connect with people from different backgrounds
to diffuse tense situations.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
He was like a chameleon, adapting to his surroundings and.
Speaker 1 (08:40):
Beyond just communication, it gave him this unique perspective on the.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
World, seeing things through different cultural lenses.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Which probably helped him later on as a comedian for sure.
And South Africa itself is incredibly diverse.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
Linguistically eleven official languages.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
It's like the Tower of Babel.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
It must have been challenging.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
It was, but people found ways to communicate, often blending languages,
relying on context, and for Trevor, his ability to speak
these languages fluently gave him a real advantage.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
It helped him navigate this complex social landscape, especially.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
In school, where he struggled to fit in with anyone group.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
He wasn't fully accepted by the white students, the black students,
or the colored students, so.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
He kind of carved out his own niche.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
He became the tuck shop guy right.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
He ran a little convenience store within the schools, selling
snacks and drinks.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
That's smart.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Was driven by his need to belong and also to
make some money, and.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
It allowed him to interact with all these different groups.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Yeah, he became this connector bringing people together through the
power of snacks.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
And his high school was a real melting pot.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
It was a model c school, right.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Yeah. These were formerly white only schools that started integrating
after apartheid ended.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
So a mix of backgrounds, a real mix.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
You had wealthy white kids, working class white kids, newly
affluent black kids, students from the townships, colored students, Indian students.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (10:03):
But even though he was integrated on paper, social groups
still formed the long lines of class and geography, which
often overlapped with race.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
So those divisions were still there.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Unfortunately they were, and as a mixed race individual, Trevor
still felt like an outsider.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
Not quite belonging to any one group, and.
Speaker 1 (10:20):
That feeling extended to his early experiences with love and rejection,
like his crush on Zahira, Oh Zahra.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
He planned for years to ask her to the Matrix dance.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Yeah, he had it all figured out and then what happened, Well,
on Valentine's Day, she dumps him for the popular white
boy Lorenzo. Oh no, it was a harsh lesson in
teenage romance and the social hierarchies of high school heartbreak.
It happens to the best of us.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And from heartbreak to hustling.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Yeah. Trevor had a real knack for business from a young.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Age, starting with a CD piracy business.
Speaker 1 (10:54):
Right. He saw that people wanted affordable music and he
provided exactly.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
He was a true lunch And then he teamed up
with Bongani and.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
Tom Bongani and Tom.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
That was an adventure, involved in all sorts of things.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Djaying, payday lending, even running a pawn shop, all out
of Alexandra.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
The hood as he calls it, and that experience really
opened his eyes to a different side of life.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Oh yeah, he saw the blurred lines between civilian and
criminal life, the strong sense of community even among gangsters.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
It's like a different world, it was.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
And there was this concept of insurance that they had
when dealing with white people. Basically, if they did something
wrong to a white person, they had to make sure
that the community was taken care of.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
It was like a twisted form of social responsibility.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Yeah, and then there's the go Hitler incident.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Oh yeah, that's a story.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
They're djaying at a Jewish school event, a Jewish school
and they had this dancer named Hitler. No way, I know, right,
and the crowd is going wild, chanting go Hitler.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Oh my god.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Trevi and his friends are like, what's going on.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
They were clueless.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
They had no idea about the historical significance of that name.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
It's a perfect example of the cultural disconnect.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
In the township context. Hitler didn't have the same weight
as it did for the Jewish community. It was just
a name, sometimes even seen as a symbol of strength.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
It's a really shocking but also kind of funny moment
that highlights the different worlds that existed in South Africa.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
And speaking of different worlds, Trevor's family life also went
through some major.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
Changes, like when they moved to Highland's North.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Highlands North that was a whole different environment.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Yeah. It was an affluent, predominantly white suburb, a far
cry from Eden Park and.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Suetto, so he was an outsider again pretty much.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
It was a community of isolation, with people living behind
high walls, and he had trouble connecting.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
With anyone and his relationship with his father was also complicated.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Yeah, because of the laws of apartheid. They had to
meet in secret.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
When Trevor was young, secret meetings.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
Very different from the big family Christmas celebrations he had
with his mother's side, right, And although his mother always
spoke positive about his father, when his father moved to
keep Town, they gradually lost touch.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
It's sad, it is.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
And then there's Abel, his stepfather. He comes into the picture,
and at first he seems like a positive influence, almost
like an older brother to Trevor.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
But then things took a dark turn.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
A very dark turn. Abel has this temper and he
starts physically abusing Trevor's mother.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
It's heartbreaking.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Trevor describes feeling completely helpless watching this abuse happen.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
And his mother's explanation for Abel's behavior is so insightful.
Speaker 1 (13:31):
Did she say?
Speaker 2 (13:32):
She said, he doesn't hate us, he hates himself.
Speaker 1 (13:35):
It shows her incredible empathy even in the face of violence.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Like she was trying to understand the root cause of
his pain.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
And on top of all this, they were struggling financially.
Speaker 2 (13:44):
Especially after the garage business failed.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Yeah, they were really struggling. They were eating things like sawdust,
meat and more pain worms, which are like a last
resort food. It sounds awful, it was, and eventually Trevor
decides he can't take it anymore.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
He leaves home.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Yeah, it was a breaking point for him. He need
to get out of that environment to protect himself. And
then we come to the most shocking part of the book,
the shooting of his mother.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
It's a really difficult part to read.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Trevor gets his phone call from his brother Andrew, who
just says, very calmly, Mom's been shot, just like that,
and immediately Trevor knows he was able.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
He didn't even have to say it.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
The level of fear and violence they live with was
just unimaginable, and the details of the shooting are horrific.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
Abel confronts them after Church threatens them. His mother tries
to run away and he shoots her in the back
of the head.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
It's so brutal it is. And Andrew is amazing in
that moment. He takes control drives his injured mother to
the hospital while she's bleeding in the back seat, a
true hero. And then Trevor calls Abel, who confirms what
he's done and even threatens Trevor, it's chilling, it.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
Is, and yet somehow his mother survives miraculously.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
She survives a gunshot wound to the head.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
It's a miracle.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
When Trevor asks her about health insurance, she says, oh,
but I do have insurance. Jesus.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Her faith was unshakable, it really was.
Speaker 1 (15:08):
She believed that God had saved her, and it's that
unwavering spirit that makes her such a powerful figure in
the book.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
It really is a remarkable story.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
It is Born a Crime. Yeah, takes you on this
incredible journey from the complexities of apartheid to the resilience
of the human spirit.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
And it's told with this unique blend of humor and seriousness,
which makes.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
It both entertaining and thought provoking.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
So for our listener, we hope this deep dive into
Born a Crime has given you a glimpse into this
powerful book.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
It's definitely a book worth reading.
Speaker 1 (15:36):
At Bookcast, we aim to give you best sellers in minutes,
but we always encourage you to check out the full
book if you're intrigued.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
There's so much more to discover.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Trevor, Noah's story shows us how societal structures, even those
built on injustice can shape individual lives and profound ways,
and it's.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
A testament to the human ability to adapt, to persevere,
and even find humor in the darkest of times.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Well said Sarah, Thank you and thank you all for
tuning into Bookcast.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Join us next time for another deep dive into a
best selling book.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Until then, happy reading, Happy reading. See you next time.
Hey everyone, and welcome back to book Cast, where we
bring you the best sellers in minutes. I'm Sarah and
I'm Paul, and today we're diving deep into Born a Crime.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Oh, Born a Crime, Yeah, by Trevor Noah. This book
has been like a massive bestseller.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Oh yeah, it's been huge for years now, years and years.
What makes this book so captivating?
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I think it's just an incredible story. Yeah, you know,
it gives you a first hand look at growing up
in South Africa during and after apartheid. Absolutely, and Noah's
experiences are just so eye opening.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Often really funny, sometimes heartbreaking, and always thought provoking.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
It really makes you think. Yeah, so we're going to
unpack some of the most fascinating and insightful moments from
Born a Crime, focusing on his childhood and youth.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Let's get to it.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Let's do it. So Born a Crime, even the title
is kind of striking.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
It hits you hard. It does like you were explaining
how Trevor's very existence was actually against the law.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Yeah. So, apartheid in South Africa had these laws called
the Immorality Act, the Immorality Act, and these laws outlawed
inter racial relationships. So his parents exactly. So his parents
broke the law. Yeah, and if you were caught, you
could face up to four years in prison.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Four years just for being in love.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Yeah, for having a relationship with someone of a different race.
And so Trevor's parents, you know, a white Swiss father,
a blackest host a mother a crime. Yeah, he was
literally born a crime according to their laws. And it
wasn't just about preventing relationships. This act created like this
constant fear, this secrecy. Oh yeah, that really impacted families
(01:32):
like Trevor's.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Right, because it's not like they could be open about it.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Oho.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
It was like a secret society, you know, they had.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
To keep it quiet. It must have been so stressful, definitely,
and for Trevor, like it made his existence a source
of anxiety just for being alive. And this was all
part of a bigger strategy by the apartheid government to
maintain control, to.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Control people through fear and division.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Yeah. So apartheid wasn't just about racial segregation. It was
also about creating distrust and animosity between different black ethnic groups.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
So it's like they were turning people against each other exactly.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
And they did this through propaganda, through controlling resources, really
trying to make sure that there wasn't a united front
against the white minority.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
So a part hate, as the book calls it.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
A part hate, such a good term for it.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
It really sums it up.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
And these divisions, unfortunately, had consequences that lasted even after
apartheid ended.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Oh yeah, the book talks about some really intense conflicts.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yeah, like the end of apartheid and the release of
Mandela were huge steps forward, but after decades of this
engineered division race, there were these deep scars that remained,
like the power struggles between groups like the Zulu and
the Exosa, which were amplified after the old regime fell.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
And it led to so much violence.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
Oh, it was horrific. Yeah, you know, there's this practice
of necklacing, where people were burned alive with tires around
their necks.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Oh, it is awful.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Trevor actually writes about seeing a charred body on his
way to school. It's a really disturbing image.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
It really shows the brutality of that time.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Yeah, and in the midst of all this societal turmoil,
you have Trevor trying to figure out his own identity,
starting with his very birth right.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
He was born into a world where his parents' relationship
was a dangerous secret.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
Yeah, and to protect his father, his name wasn't even
on Trevor's birth certificate.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
So he's growing up and his experience is so.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Fragmented, living in different places.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
Different places. He lived illegally in white areas like Hillbrow
with his mother, than in Soweto with his grandmother, and
later in eden Park, which was designated as a colored area.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
And in each of these places he was an outsider totally.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
In white areas, his skin color made him stand out.
In Souetto his lighter complexion made him different, and even
eden Park, where he might have physically blended in more,
his upbringing and his mother's influence set him apart.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
It's like he never really fit in anywhere exactly.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
He was constantly navigating these different worlds and trying to
find his place. And speaking of his mother, she sounds
like an incredible woman.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Oh, she's definitely a force of nature.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
The book really highlights her deep religious faith.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Oh, she was deeply religious.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Like she would go to multiple church services every Sunday,
a white church, a black church, sometimes a mixed congregation.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
And the book draws a really interesting contrast between these services.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Yeah, like the White church was brief efficient, almost like
a business transaction in and out, whereas the Black church,
often held outdoors, would go on for hours with singing
in prayer and this real sense of community.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
It's more emotional.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
And she had this explanation that black people needed more
time with Jesus because they had endured more suffering.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Do that makes sense in a way?
Speaker 1 (04:39):
It does. And her faith wasn't just something for Sundays.
It was this active, unwavering belief that she could overcome
any obstacle.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Like the story about their constantly breaking down VW.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Beetle Yeah, that car was always falling apart. Oh it
was a lemon, but she never saw it as a defeat. No,
it was just the devil trying to stop them from going.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
To church, an obstacle to to overcome.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
And even when the car broke down, she would insist
on taking the minibuses.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Which were not always reliable.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
No, those minibusses were kind of a wild ride. There's
actually a pretty harrowing story about them being thrown off
a minibus.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Oh yeah, tell me about that.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
So they're on this minibus and the driver gets angry
because he sees Trevor's mother had been in a car
with another man earlier, and because she was speaking exosa.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
So tribalism and sexism.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
All mixed into one, and the situation escalates to the
point where they're forcibly removed from the minibus. Wow, and
the drivers just yelling abuse at them.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
That's scary.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
It was a really dangerous situation.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
But through it all, Trevor's mother never gave up.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
No, she was determined to get to church, and that
determination is something she instilled in Trevor.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
She famously raised him like a white kid.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yes, what did that mean exactly?
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Well, it meant raising him with the belief that the
world was full of possibilities for him, that his opinions mattered,
and that he could achieve anything he set his mind to.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Like encouraging him to speak his mind, think critically, exact
sent which was so different from how many black children
were raised at the time.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
Right They were often told to keep their heads down
and not cause trouble.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
And there are these great stories in the book that
show her resilience and her ability to find humor in
difficult situations, like.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
The Mulberry Juice incident.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Oh yeah, tell me that one so young Trevor gets
into a fight with some kids and comes home covered
in mulberry juice. You had to doe, And instead of
getting upset, his mother burst out laughing and says, now
you really are half black and half white.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
She had a great sense of humor, Oh she did.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
And it's that ability to find the funny side of
things that really helped them through tough times.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
And her approach to discipline was also interesting.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Yeah. She had clear boundaries and always explained the reason.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
For the punishment, so it wasn't arbitrary.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
No, it was always about teaching him a lesson, and
then right after the punishment, she'd be back to being
warm and loving, back to normal, like nothing had happened.
It created the sense of security for Trevor, even within
the context of discipline.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
And she always stood up for him, even against authority
figures like at his Catholic school.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Oh yeah, she was his biggest advocate.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
Like when he was punished for wanting to participate in
the euterist.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
Or when he was laughing while being physically.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Disciplined, which is a natural reaction for some people.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
It was a nervous laugh but the school didn't.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
Understand that, and his mother wasn't having it.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
No, she went straight to the principle and basically told
them that they didn't have to hit a child properly
if he was laughing during the punishment.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
She was fierce.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Oh yeah, she was not afraid to speak her mind.
And then there's the demon incident.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
Oh yes, the indoor urination during the storm.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
It's such a funny story, but it also shows the
blend of cultural beliefs that his mother held.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
Explain that a little bit.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
So there's a huge storm and young Trevor, instead of
going to the outhouse, peas in the house inside and
his grandmother finds out, and his mother immediately thinks it's witchcraft.
A demon in the.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
House, a demon.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
So they had this whole ritual burning the evidence on
the drive way, with prayers and hymns.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
It's a really interesting mix of traditional African beliefs and
her Christian faith.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
Yeah, it shows how these different belief systems were intertwined
in their lives. And another big theme in Born a
Crime is the power of language.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Language was crucial for Trevor.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
Absolutely. He realized early on that being able to speak
someone's language could break down barriers color exactly. He became
fluent in Zulu, Exosa, Swana, all these different.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Languages, a true polyglot.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
It allowed him to connect with people from different backgrounds
to diffuse tense situations.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
He was like a chameleon, adapting to his surroundings and.
Speaker 1 (08:40):
Beyond just communication, it gave him this unique perspective on the.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
World, seeing things through different cultural lenses.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Which probably helped him later on as a comedian for sure.
And South Africa itself is incredibly diverse.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
Linguistically eleven official languages.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
It's like the Tower of Babel.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
It must have been challenging.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
It was, but people found ways to communicate, often blending languages,
relying on context, and for Trevor, his ability to speak
these languages fluently gave him a real advantage.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
It helped him navigate this complex social landscape, especially.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
In school, where he struggled to fit in with anyone group.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
He wasn't fully accepted by the white students, the black students,
or the colored students, so.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
He kind of carved out his own niche.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
He became the tuck shop guy right.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
He ran a little convenience store within the schools, selling
snacks and drinks.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
That's smart.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Was driven by his need to belong and also to
make some money, and.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
It allowed him to interact with all these different groups.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
Yeah, he became this connector bringing people together through the
power of snacks.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
And his high school was a real melting pot.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
It was a model c school, right.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Yeah. These were formerly white only schools that started integrating
after apartheid ended.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
So a mix of backgrounds, a real mix.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
You had wealthy white kids, working class white kids, newly
affluent black kids, students from the townships, colored students, Indian students.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (10:03):
But even though he was integrated on paper, social groups
still formed the long lines of class and geography, which
often overlapped with race.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
So those divisions were still there.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Unfortunately they were, and as a mixed race individual, Trevor
still felt like an outsider.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
Not quite belonging to any one group, and.
Speaker 1 (10:20):
That feeling extended to his early experiences with love and rejection,
like his crush on Zahira, Oh Zahra.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
He planned for years to ask her to the Matrix dance.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Yeah, he had it all figured out and then what happened, Well,
on Valentine's Day, she dumps him for the popular white
boy Lorenzo. Oh no, it was a harsh lesson in
teenage romance and the social hierarchies of high school heartbreak.
It happens to the best of us.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And from heartbreak to hustling.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Yeah. Trevor had a real knack for business from a young.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Age, starting with a CD piracy business.
Speaker 1 (10:54):
Right. He saw that people wanted affordable music and he
provided exactly.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
He was a true lunch And then he teamed up
with Bongani and.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
Tom Bongani and Tom.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
That was an adventure, involved in all sorts of things.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Djaying, payday lending, even running a pawn shop, all out
of Alexandra.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
The hood as he calls it, and that experience really
opened his eyes to a different side of life.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Oh yeah, he saw the blurred lines between civilian and
criminal life, the strong sense of community even among gangsters.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
It's like a different world, it was.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
And there was this concept of insurance that they had
when dealing with white people. Basically, if they did something
wrong to a white person, they had to make sure
that the community was taken care of.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
It was like a twisted form of social responsibility.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Yeah, and then there's the go Hitler incident.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Oh yeah, that's a story.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
They're djaying at a Jewish school event, a Jewish school
and they had this dancer named Hitler. No way, I know, right,
and the crowd is going wild, chanting go Hitler.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Oh my god.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Trevi and his friends are like, what's going on.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
They were clueless.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
They had no idea about the historical significance of that name.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
It's a perfect example of the cultural disconnect.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
In the township context. Hitler didn't have the same weight
as it did for the Jewish community. It was just
a name, sometimes even seen as a symbol of strength.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
It's a really shocking but also kind of funny moment
that highlights the different worlds that existed in South Africa.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
And speaking of different worlds, Trevor's family life also went
through some major.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
Changes, like when they moved to Highland's North.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Highlands North that was a whole different environment.
Speaker 1 (12:30):
Yeah. It was an affluent, predominantly white suburb, a far
cry from Eden Park and.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Suetto, so he was an outsider again pretty much.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
It was a community of isolation, with people living behind
high walls, and he had trouble connecting.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
With anyone and his relationship with his father was also complicated.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Yeah, because of the laws of apartheid. They had to
meet in secret.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
When Trevor was young, secret meetings.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
Very different from the big family Christmas celebrations he had
with his mother's side, right, And although his mother always
spoke positive about his father, when his father moved to
keep Town, they gradually lost touch.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
It's sad, it is.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
And then there's Abel, his stepfather. He comes into the picture,
and at first he seems like a positive influence, almost
like an older brother to Trevor.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
But then things took a dark turn.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
A very dark turn. Abel has this temper and he
starts physically abusing Trevor's mother.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
It's heartbreaking.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Trevor describes feeling completely helpless watching this abuse happen.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
And his mother's explanation for Abel's behavior is so insightful.
Speaker 1 (13:31):
Did she say?
Speaker 2 (13:32):
She said, he doesn't hate us, he hates himself.
Speaker 1 (13:35):
It shows her incredible empathy even in the face of violence.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Like she was trying to understand the root cause of
his pain.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
And on top of all this, they were struggling financially.
Speaker 2 (13:44):
Especially after the garage business failed.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Yeah, they were really struggling. They were eating things like sawdust,
meat and more pain worms, which are like a last
resort food. It sounds awful, it was, and eventually Trevor
decides he can't take it anymore.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
He leaves home.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Yeah, it was a breaking point for him. He need
to get out of that environment to protect himself. And
then we come to the most shocking part of the book,
the shooting of his mother.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
It's a really difficult part to read.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Trevor gets his phone call from his brother Andrew, who
just says, very calmly, Mom's been shot, just like that,
and immediately Trevor knows he was able.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
He didn't even have to say it.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
The level of fear and violence they live with was
just unimaginable, and the details of the shooting are horrific.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
Abel confronts them after Church threatens them. His mother tries
to run away and he shoots her in the back
of the head.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
It's so brutal it is. And Andrew is amazing in
that moment. He takes control drives his injured mother to
the hospital while she's bleeding in the back seat, a
true hero. And then Trevor calls Abel, who confirms what
he's done and even threatens Trevor, it's chilling, it.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
Is, and yet somehow his mother survives miraculously.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
She survives a gunshot wound to the head.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
It's a miracle.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
When Trevor asks her about health insurance, she says, oh,
but I do have insurance. Jesus.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Her faith was unshakable, it really was.
Speaker 1 (15:08):
She believed that God had saved her, and it's that
unwavering spirit that makes her such a powerful figure in
the book.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
It really is a remarkable story.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
It is Born a Crime. Yeah, takes you on this
incredible journey from the complexities of apartheid to the resilience
of the human spirit.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
And it's told with this unique blend of humor and seriousness,
which makes.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
It both entertaining and thought provoking.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
So for our listener, we hope this deep dive into
Born a Crime has given you a glimpse into this
powerful book.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
It's definitely a book worth reading.
Speaker 1 (15:36):
At Bookcast, we aim to give you best sellers in minutes,
but we always encourage you to check out the full
book if you're intrigued.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
There's so much more to discover.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Trevor, Noah's story shows us how societal structures, even those
built on injustice can shape individual lives and profound ways,
and it's.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
A testament to the human ability to adapt, to persevere,
and even find humor in the darkest of times.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Well said Sarah, Thank you and thank you all for
tuning into Bookcast.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Join us next time for another deep dive into a
best selling book.
Speaker 1 (16:07):
Until then, happy reading, Happy reading. See you next time.
Popular Podcasts
Fudd Around And Find Out
UConn basketball star Azzi Fudd brings her championship swag to iHeart Women’s Sports with Fudd Around and Find Out, a weekly podcast that takes fans along for the ride as Azzi spends her final year of college trying to reclaim the National Championship and prepare to be a first round WNBA draft pick. Ever wonder what it’s like to be a world-class athlete in the public spotlight while still managing schoolwork, friendships and family time? It’s time to Fudd Around and Find Out!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!