History of South Africa: Apartheid

How Gold Affected South Africa Encouraged South Africa’s industrial development and led to the politics of segregation Many people came to the area to mine the gold –Prospectors, laborers, fortune hunters, shopkeepers and immigrants came from all over the world to mine the gold in Johannesburg

Impact of Gold, cont. Residential areas were needed immediately –Hastily constructed homes gave way to slums –Racial mingling occurred in the slums The policies of segregation and later, apartheid, were attempts to stop this racial mixing.

Johannesburg in 1886 when gold was discovered. Johannesburg only ten years after the discovery of gold.

What the Mines Needed: Lots of low-grade ore containing small amounts of gold Expensive Cheap black labor Need to cut costs Eats away at profits Expensive Skilled labor - white immigrants Price of gold internationally fixed Expensive

Segregation Becomes Law 1910—South Africa was united for the first time into a single nation known as the Union of South Africa. Racial segregation became official policy throughout the Union and laid the foundation for apartheid.

The Hierarchy 1 st Class/Elite of Nation: Whites 2 nd Class: Indians 3 rd Class: “Coloreds”= those of mixed African and Indian decent 4 th Class: Africans

What does this political cartoon infer?

Who was behind Segregation? The two key politicians at the time, General Barry Hertzog and General Jan Smuts, were strongly in favor of segregating South African society. They introduced segregation into the city, the workplace and politics.

Segregating the Workplace: Key Legislation The Mines and Works Act (1911): –Reserved certain skilled work on the mines for whites. The Industrial Conciliation Act (1924): –Excluded Africans from membership of trade unions, and as a result from industrial councils. The Wages Act (1925): –Set compulsory minimum wages for white workers in unskilled jobs. The Mines and Works Amendment Act (1926): –Also known as the Color Bar Act. –Excluded Africans and Indians from skilled work –Provided certificates of competency for trades in the mines which could be issued only to whites and ‘coloreds’ in certain occupations.

Segregating Political Rights: Key Legislation The Native Representation Act (1936): –Removed the Africans from allowing them to vote and provided Africans with their own separate institution – the Native Representative Council (NRC). –In the NRC, Africans were allowed to make recommendations to parliament about issues that affected Africans. The Native Trust and Land Act (1936/7): –Decreased the land which Africans could own from 8.7% to 1.3% –Placed more controls over labor rental on farms. The Native Laws Amendment Act (1937): –Local authorities could now refuse Africans entry to towns and force them into the reserves if they did not have jobs.

WWII ( ) Led to a period of huge change and upheaval. African working people, confronted with rising prices, low wages and shortages of food and housing, became increasingly radicalized. Ordinary people began organizing around these issues, and the 1940s saw a number of grassroots struggles taking place, such as squatter movements and bus boycotts.

Apartheid Begins The Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act of 1949 –According to this law, inter-racial marriage was forbidden. The Immorality Amendment Act of 1950 –Sexual relations between black and white South Africans were forbidden. –To enforce this Act, police raided houses and broke into bedrooms to photograph couples breaking the law. The Population Registration Act of 1950 –People in South Africa were to be classified according to the racial group to which they belonged. –Racial classification determined where they were allowed to live and what work they could do.

What if racial identity is unclear? Tests were created to determine racial identity The Eyelid Test –"The eyelid test is this: if when a person closes his eyelid under ordinary conditions the colour is continuous and uniform. There is nothing to indicate ‘coloured’ blood. But if the eyelid is rather startlingly white that is one of the signs. I used to test people by dropping something and their eyes would look downwards – and then you knew who they were. It was so simple." Adapted from Apartheid: The Lighter Side by B Maclennan, Chameleon Press, Cape Town, 1990, p.20

Affects of Apartheid Forced removals –Government began to force black people living in so- called ‘white’ areas to move. –Between 1960 and 1994, over 3.5 million people were deliberately uprooted from their homes and their livelihoods, and plunged into poverty and hopelessness.

Affects of Apartheid, cont. Malnutrition –1 out of every 4 African children in South Africa in the 1960s died before their first birthday. Apartheid created an unequal society, in which most Africans lived lives of poverty and hardship.

Nelson Mandela President of the African National Congress Youth League Promoted mass protest, boycotts and passive resistance Imprisoned for 27 years (on and off) "During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to the struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." –Nelson Mandela

Steve Biko Father of the Black Consciousness Movement Viewed as a threat and was arrested. Incarcerated and held naked and in chains while he was severely tortured and beaten until he died 18 days after imprisonment. “Blacks think that everything good is white. This attitude comes from childhood. When we go to school, our school is not the same as the white school… Our homes are different, the streets are different. So you begin to feel that there is something incomplete about being black, and that completeness goes with being white.” Adapted from I Write What I Like by Steve Biko