The story often uses the phrase “trusted housemaids and gardeners” or “reliable housemaids and gardeners.” In repeatedly making the distinction, the story is showcasing the way that white people like the husband and wife make sweeping generalizations about black people. They imply that black people are inherently unreliable and untrustworthy, and that there are only a few exceptions to this rule. In this passage, it is the housemaid, a black woman, who contributes to the oppression of those of her own race. However, this doesn’t mean that the housemaid herself is racist. Instead, it seems that the housemaid realizes that her position as the maid for an upper-class white family puts her in danger. When “Once Upon a Time” was published in the late 1980s, crime was at an all-time high: between 1980 and 1990, burglaries rose by 31 percent, while serious offenses rose by 22 percent. This surge in crime was at least partially a reaction to a new constitution implemented in the mid-1980s that guaranteed parliamentary representation to “colored” (mixed-race) people and Asian people but not black people. Given this context, it’s clear that the housemaid’s fear of the
tsotsis—South African slang for “hooligans” or “criminals”—is justified and hinges on the broader sociopolitical environment rather than personal discrimination.