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South Africa : Pre- and Post-Apartheid: Background Briefing

Apartheid (Afrikaans: “apartness”) is the name of the policy that governed relations between the white minority and the nonwhite majority of South Africa during the 20th century. Although racial segregation had long been in practice there, the apartheid name was first used about 1948 to describe the racial segregation policies embraced by the white minority government. Apartheid dictated where South Africans, on the basis of their race, could live and work, the type of education they could receive, and whether they could vote. Events in the early 1990s marked the end of legislated apartheid, but the social and economic effects remained deeply entrenched.

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Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica, accessed 23 July 2020

Video : SBS series: Apartheid

Part 1 of a 2 part series, Apartheid, tracing the history of apartheid in South Africa. The program covers the earliest settlements, the Boer War, legalisation of the apartheid system and the repression of black resistance. Covered also - the escalating violence between Inkatha and the African National Congress, the rising influence of the Afrikaner movement, the resignation of Botha and the release of Nelson Mandela.

Part 2 of a 2 part series, Apartheid, tracing the history of Apartheid in South Africa. Documents the escalating violence between Inkatha and the African National Congress, the resignation of Botha and the release of Nelson Mandela.

Video : The South African Anti-Apartheid Movement

In the video, The South African Anti-Apartheid Movement, rare footage, detailed primary accounts and expert commentary provides a comprehensive look at the colonial history of South Africa, the devastating social, political and economic effects of apartheid, and the difficult, sometimes violent struggle of Mandela and the African National Congress to eliminate apartheid and create a free, democratic society.

Colonialism: Key Concepts

  1. Colonialism was a new stage in relationships that had been going on for 1,000 years between many of the African and European nations.
  2. Conquest was precisely that—by force, sometimes by trickery, sometimes by “agreement”—so that the African nation could bargain for some rights.
  3. Racism played a role in conquest and in colonial rule.
  4. The colonial period was relatively short, roughly 1870–1960—but it has had a heavy and lasting impact on economic, social, and political affairs.
    • Colonialism fostered economic dependency, with long-term effects
    • Colonialism was authoritarian and fostered indigenous authoritarian rule, with long-term effects
  5. Colonial rule led to resistance and, ultimately, to independence
  6. African voices (not just restatement by others of African views) are necessary for understanding this period of history.

Source: 'Colonialism: Key Concepts, African Study Centre, Pardee School of Global Studies, Boston University, accessed 27 July 2020 

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