Racism in South Africa

Category: Race and Ethnicity

Alex, Anna, Charlotte, Kevin, Louis

The history of South African racism can be traced back to British colonialism
The Dutch, and then the British came to South Africa as settler colonists.
In order to control South Africa’s coal deposits, the indigenous people had to be removed.
Using superior weapons, the Europeans were able to force indigenous Africans to what were nominally sovereign nations but were essentially reservations, allowing white settlers to occupy more valuable land.
Apartheid came out of a British-imposed system where blacks were forced to carry passes to travel from one place to another.

1948 is regarded as the formal start of apartheid. At this point, South African citizens were formally classified by race.
This entailed formal segregation of blacks, coloreds, and Indians in South Africa.
Segregation included separate and inferior schools, medicine, recreational areas, along with designated white and colored land.
Soon after, black voting rights were denied in the Cape Province, followed by total denial of voting rights, culminating in denial of citizenship in 1970 by the establishment of “homelands.”

Alexandra, Anna, Charlotte, Kevin, Louis