The apartheid system in South Africa has placed a ban or restriction on everything from peaceful gatherings to free speech. And what’s more, P.W. Botha has even exiled musicians from the racially segregated country. Joseph Shabalala of Ladysmith Black Mambazo has been banned from South Africa for expressing his feelings in the most universally known language, music.

But one musician, Alpha Blondy, has managed to capture, in music, the horror and strife which exists in South Africa today. His most recent album, aptly titled Apartheid Is Nazism, is one of the stongest anti-apartheid statements, set to music, to date.

The diversity of this album can be heard in both the music and the lyrics. The strong reggae riff of his band, The Solar System, envelops the listener and compels him to sway with the mesmerizing rhythm.

But the healing power of this album can best be felt in the lyrics. Sung in English, French, Mandinque, Dioula, and Patois, one need not understand the language to appreciate its meaning. The smooth, captivating voice of Alpha Blondy retracts the need for English lyrics. And even though only two cuts are sung in English, various lyrics stand-out which can be easily interpreted.

By piecing together certain words in the opening song, “Afriki,” one can tell it deals with the black man’s redemption, from Montego Bay in Kingston Jamaica to Africa.

A minimal understanding of the French language would assist in interpreting the cuts “Jah Houphouet” and “Sebe Allah Ye.” “Jah Houphouet” speaks of the poverty which little children in South Africa live in.

It is a sad fact a place exists where non-white children cannot play with the children of white heritage. As Alpha Blondy says, “Let children be children.” The track “Sebe Allah Ye” deals with the spiritual inspiration which is very important to the people of South Africa.

The two songs in English, the title track “Apartheid is Nazism” and “Come Back Jesus” make the two stongest statements of the album. It is, perhaps, best that the title track, “Apartheid Is Nazism” is in English. “Apartheid Is Nazism” sends a plea to the American people to, “break the neck of this apartheid.” In the song, Alpha Blondy makes a plea to the heartless South African government that, “you don’t have the right to shoot at children. Cause black and white we are all the same.”

“Come Back Jesus” is, again, a plea to the spiritual for guidance. “So I wonder why, I wonder they’re fighting war.” The war Alpha Blondy speaks of is the police violence used to epress the impovershed and defenseless South African.

Tracks such as “Idjida,” “Sahel,” and “Kiti” deal with various other aspects of South African life such as poverty, detention, and unenvoked police abuse.

The name Alpha Blondy, when translated, means “first bandit,” which is appropriate for both the musician and his music. This music has had the impact in Africa that Bob Marley had in America. And with his album Apartheid Is Nazism, Alpha Blondy is well on his way to becoming the next Jah of reggae.