Gay white journalist who opposed 'whiteness' kills himself

I don't usually share personal life-stuffs here, but in honour of #loveislove, a snap or two from my wedding day 😍 pic.twitter.com/ZHeKLIxt2e

— Pieter Howes (@PieterHowes) May 17, 2017

A white journalist, actor and director who drew a following on Twitter by attacking "whiteness" and President Trump killed himself Saturday evening.

Pieter Bosch Botha, 34, also known as Pieter Howes, died at the Sandton hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa, after a battle with depression, reported the South African TV industry website TeeVeeTee.

Pieter Howes (Twitter)

He sent out a somewhat cryptic tweet on Friday, reported the independent news and commentary site Information Liberation.

"I'm not afraid of the moment of death. Never have been, because as much as we weren't aware of ourselves before we existed, so too you won't be aware that you have ceased to exist," he wrote. "What I do fear, however, is that I'm wrong and I get reincarnated, doomed to live here again."

He suffered from bipolar disorder, playwright and family friend Wim Vorster told Netwerk24.

Howes changed his last name after marrying Craig Howes in 2017.

'All white people are racist'

Information Liberation noted Howes' profile photo on Twitter featured him boasting he was blocked by President Trump. He opposed Christianity for being against homosexuality and praised people for leaving the church. And he regularly declared that all white people, even the "good" ones, are racist.

Last year, he made headlines in South Africa by joining the Economic Freedom Fighters party of communist Parliament member Julius Sello Malema.

Information Liberation reported he had a popular Twitter thread in August 2018 in which he criticized Trump for helping advance "the white genocide myth in South Africa."

In a companion article, "On South Africa's White Genocide Myth And How Right-Wing Afrikaners Are Dividing The Nation," Howes wrote:

Many white Afrikaners in South Africa are convinced they are the victims of an ongoing genocide, perpetuated by black people as a form of revenge for the horrors inflicted upon them during Apartheid and colonialism. This idea is hinged on statistics focused on the number of violent farm attacks.

But these statistics have been so widely debunked; it is unfathomable that it still finds traction in conversations around the world. The former President of Genocide Watch – an international organization that monitors the potential for genocide in countries worldwide – Dr. Gregory Stanton, has himself said that a genocide against Afrikaners is not taking place.

[...] White South Africans have never apologized for Apartheid and colonialism. A few feeble and wholly inadequate acknowledgments have been attempted by some whites. However, the historical pain that weighs heavily on the shoulders of black people has never been compassionately and unequivocally recognized.

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Now, repeat after me: There is no white genocide taking place. Again. There is no white genocide taking place.

News of his death was confirmed on Facebook by Howes' father, artist At Botha, reported the South African daily national newspaper The Citizen.

"I just want to let all my friends know tonight that my youngest child Pieter has passed away – I'm struggling to process it, and know that with all my FB friends, I won't be able to answer your messages. I know you care, and that's enough. Love, At," he wrote in Afrikaans.

Howes also wrote for the U.S.-based website The Inquisitr.

He founded The Enwhitenment Project, The Citizen reported, described on Twitter as "a social collective that aims to build awareness of all things related to Whiteness in order to bridge the racial divide."