South Africans will live with the reality of racism for a long time.
These are the views of top academics following allegations of racism at the University of Stellenbosch, one of the oldest universities in the country and previously regarded as a bastion of Afrikanerdom.
A first year Law student, Theuns du Toit has been suspended following allegations that he urinated on the belongings of a fellow student Babalo Ndwayana last Sunday.
A petition which described the incident as a "racially motivated attack" called for Du Toit's expulsion from the university has more than 100 000 signatures.
A renowned expert in education and an academic at the university, Professor Jonathan Jansen believed that racists could be rehabilitated.
Jansen was at the helm of the University of Free State in 2009 when it underwent transformation.
"Anybody can be rehabilitated, including racists, homophobes and xenophobes," said Jansen.
Jansen said racism in schools and society was a reality. "We forget that institutional racism has been deeply ingrained in our society for more than three centuries and in universities like Stellenbosch University and University of Cape Town for more than a century, " added Jansen.
A political analyst at the University of North West Piet Croucamp who described the incident as a "brutal reality of racism on display" also believed that racists could be rehabilitated.
"If you want to rehabilitate a racist attitude you have to institutionalise a shared experience," said Croucamp.
Croucamp fell victim to alleged insults and threats this week while attending the Grain South Africa's agricultural exhibition in Bothaville, Free State. A man allegedly called Croucamp a p**s and "bad for the Afrikaner".
Croucamp said subtle attributes of racial prejudice hide in language, attitudes and privilege.
"Many people who display racist attitudes simply have no clue how what they think, do and say impact others. That's because we lack a shared experience in South Africa. We have to do something about our education system; we have to integrate our schools," he said.
Both Jansen and Croucamp commended the university for the steps it took to deal with the incident.
"I think Wim de Villiers (the Vice Chancellor) has sensitivity for the experience of black students. But in a society that protects racial behaviour through the social architecture of inequality, poverty and privilege, it will always be difficult," said Croucamp.
Jansen added that the trick was "not to relent on the transformation of every nook and cranny of this important higher education institution."