Henry Andersen

In his article, Andersen succinctly argued and explored the notion of race as a form of classification, nothing both its structuring/symbolic and structured/ material effects as a form of common sense and as a set of social hierarchies and divisions. With regards to Métis, Anderson argued that” Métis are classified as hybrid- with all denigrating connotation of the term - in ways that deny that we seek most, an acknowledgement of our political legitimacy and authenticity as an indigenous people”.
Based on Andersen illustrations, racial classification has proven to a central element of discussion in post-colonial scholarship and such scheme of classifications played a central role in grounding, justifying, and assessing colonial projects. For instance, Andersen argues that various taxonomies of classifications were used to …show more content…
Anderson notes that “race is socially constructed and embedded in history and context”. The historical legacies of racism in South Africa are embedded and remained constructed with in the society. Furthermore, Anderson also notes that its implications are not embedded only in its material effects rather we must also situate the term in the meanings through which physical and cultural elements of humanity are emphasized in everyday life as racially remarkable. In the case of South Africa, racial biases still perpetually find expression in everyday speeches and practices in subtle ways and this subtle form of racism remains complex thus dangerous since it is real. Identity politics in which challenges such as racism, clannism, ethnicity and the like become pronounced find fertile ground in a society faced by scandalous socio-economic differentiations such as South Africa signifying the notion that “race is socially constructed along symbolic and material axes” (Anderson pp