The legacy of Apartheid in South Africa is one of violence, oppression, and segregation by the white dominated National Party against blacks and non-coloreds that lasted from 1948 to 1994. This policy of segregation by means of racial classification meant that non-whites were treated as second class citizens, not worthy of voting rights, representation, or even basic human rights. It insured that the minority white population would stay in power as it controlled the government, economic and social aspects of life, utilizing militant forces over the black and other non-white groups to maintain control. During this time extreme violence erupted against individuals and organizations who opposed this oppression with demonstration and protest. As Edmund Burke one said, “those who do not look to the past are doomed to repeat it” (Burke). This over utilized saying does fittingly
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This began all the way back in 1652 when the Dutch first settled in the Cape Colony and the subsequent warring and disease left the local black nations such as the Khoikoi were devastated by 1713 (Sackeyfio-Lenoch, 6/30). Furthermore, these conquered blacks and other non-white groups were technically free but in actuality were no better than slaves as they were forced to work poor jobs for low wages (Thompson, 38). It is from this initial subjugation that eventually lead to the mentality of non-white inferiority and subsequent exploitation by the white European government till the late 20th century. Another form of segregation came in the form of the “Population Registration Act” in 1950. The act classified the country’s people into four racial groups: White, Coloured, Indian, and African (Sackeyfio-Lenoch, 7/19). This effectively separated mixed race houses as it declared that any interracial relationship was illegal (Thompson,
This began all the way back in 1652 when the Dutch first settled in the Cape Colony and the subsequent warring and disease left the local black nations such as the Khoikoi were devastated by 1713 (Sackeyfio-Lenoch, 6/30). Furthermore, these conquered blacks and other non-white groups were technically free but in actuality were no better than slaves as they were forced to work poor jobs for low wages (Thompson, 38). It is from this initial subjugation that eventually lead to the mentality of non-white inferiority and subsequent exploitation by the white European government till the late 20th century. Another form of segregation came in the form of the “Population Registration Act” in 1950. The act classified the country’s people into four racial groups: White, Coloured, Indian, and African (Sackeyfio-Lenoch, 7/19). This effectively separated mixed race houses as it declared that any interracial relationship was illegal (Thompson,