SA 1- establishing apartheid

how did afrikaners develop a sense of unity?

- a popular magazine, the Home Companion, was published to reach ordinary Afrikaners, living on isolated farms, and give them a sense of unity with the rest of the Afrikaner people

-secret society- the Broederbond- formed in 1918- had 500 members by 1930- ensured Afrikaners were promoted- had a secret handshake so members could identify each other

- the dutch reformed church gave biblical support to Afrikaner views on the racial superiority of whites

what is separate amenities act 1953?

- the division of public services and spaces according to race- e.g. separate parks, buses, toilets, seating areas at sporting events

- apartheid signs were put up all throughout south africa

- whites had better schools, transport, hospital and leisure spaces- solidifying racial heirarchy

- act was enforced effectively and remained in force for over 3 decades- it was only repealed in 1990

-effectively implemented as a tool of "petty apartheid," embedding racial segregation in South Africa's daily life by legally mandating separate, inferior facilities for non-whites

what is bantu education act 1953?

- removed control of Black education from missionary schools and placed it under the control of the state

-in 1953, 63.92 rands were spent per white pupil and 8.99 rands per black pupil

-blacks schools had larger classes, more dilapidated buildings and less qualified teachers

- they were given less equipment and no money to repair buildings or replace furniture

- after 1963 black teachers earned a max of £320 a year while white male teachers earned a min of £603

-black children had a different curriculum and were taught white superiority and that they belonged in their ethnic groups

- they were just taught the skills needed to get a menial job in the black homelands so they would be moulded into compliant citizens and productive workers

- white lecturers who opposed apartheid were sacked

- successfully created a separate, inferior education system designed to limit the potential and opportunities of Black South Africans.

what is the natives resettlement act 1954?

- plan to move all 54000 people out of Sophiatown to a new area

- sophiatown was a challenge to the nationalists as the inhabitants came from various races and often owned their homes

- after 6 years sophiatown was demolished completely and replaced by a white suburb named Triomf

- allowed the government to move Black people to segregated townships on the outskirts- ensures the well developed areas are reserved for whites

- effectively implemented as residents were forced to move and resistance was overcome through Verwoerd's propaganda campaign (he said opponents were trying to stop slum clearance)

opposition and resistance to the nationalist government 1948-1954

- foundation of the ANC youth league 1943

- the programme of action 1949

- may days strike and national day of protest 1950

- the defiance campaign 1952

- womens anti pass law demonstrations

why were the founders of the youth league critical of the old ANC?

for trying to win the the respect of whites by their good behaviour

what views did the youth league initially have?

they didn't want to cooperate with the Indian National Congress (viewed as non africans) or the South African Communist Party (they weren't Christian and were multiracial)

what happened to the Youth league in 1947?

Lembede died so Mandela and Tambo took over the youth league and planned a programme of action

what were the aims of the Programme of Action 1949?

- to reject racial segregation completely

- to work independently of whites

- to take non violent action: boycotts, strikes, civil disobedience

what inspired mandela for the programme of action?

- the indian national congress was committed to non-violence and their problems were not that different from those of Black Africans- he was impressed by their non violent tactics and was soon working alongside them

- he saw the communist party organise massive support among striking workers on 1 may 1950- he could see the power of mass support and knew that the ANC did not yet have that kind of strength

what was the may day strike 1950?

- the SACP organised a May Day Strike against the government but government reaction was swift and violent- police and troops escorted Africans to their places of work to sleep there and on the day of strike marched them from their homes to bus stations to make sure they went to work

what led to the national day of protest on 26 June 1950?

in johannesburg police opened fire on the people- 18 people were killed

following this, mandela and the ANC called for a National Day of Protest in cooperation with political organisations, representing the coloured and indian communities- e.g. african people's organisation and the south african indian congress

large scale strikes- in cities most black businesses closed and majority of workers stayed home

what did the national day of protest lead to?

the suppression of communism act 1950

communism defined as "any activity that aimed to bring about political, social or economic change by disturbance or disorder"

empowered the minister of justice to list members of such organisations and ban them, usually for 5 year periods, from public office, from attending public meetings or from being in any specified area in south africa

the minister of justice could investigate any organisation, declare it illegal, liquidate its assets and could ban any gatherings he deemed likely to further ' the aims of communism'

how many joined in the 1952 Defiance Campaign?

mandela called 10,000 volunteers and 8577 responded

why was the date of the defiance campaign significant?

6th april 1952- as whites celebrated 300 years since the arrival of the dutch

what happened in the defiance campaign 1952?

ANC supporters all over South Africa defied apartheid regulations

they got into 'whites only' compartments of trains, queued at 'whites only' counters at post offices, they sat on 'whites only' benches

they were arrested in thousands

what were the results of the 1952 defiance campaign?

by october, 2354 people had been arrested

the courts were clogged by their numbers and the newspapers in south africa, and abroad, were full of their exploits

ANC membership rose from about 7000 to 100,000

how did mandela say he would protest now after the defiance campaign 1952?

he said violence was the only weapon that would destroy apartheid

why did the national party appeal to white voters?

- exploited surge in Afrikaner unity

- white fears and grievances

- nationalist promises

what were the white fears and grievances?

- white workers found black workers in jobs they had regarded as theirs and found that black wages had risen from 1/5 of white wages to 'only' 1/4

- white farmers resented the flood of black workers to the cities where they could earn good wages as they wanted cheap black labour

- feared black protests, strikes and resistance

- read about smuts talking of liberty and democracy while he was abroad and were angry at the new United Nations for criticising their racist policies

what were the Nationalist promises?

- for nationalist afrikaner intellectuals, teachers, clerics and broederbond members, Malan promised a white South Africa under Afrikaner rule, with blacks removed to the reserves

- for white workers he held out the danger of the 'black threat' to jobs, law and order and housing

- for white industrialists he promised a more flexible apartheid with blacks allowed, under strict controls, to leave the reservations temporarily to work in the cities

- for white farmers a supply of cheap black labour was promised

what was the Sauer Report?

it outlined apartheid in vague terms so that many whites from different backgrounds and with different beliefs could find in it something for them

who won the 1948 election?

Malan's National Party

what 10 acts were introduced between 1949 and 1955?

1. prohibition of mixed marriages act 1949

2. population registration act 1950

3. immorality amendment act 1950

4. group areas act 1950

5. suppression of communism act 1950

6. abolition of passes act 1952

7. native laws amendment act 1952

8. separate amenities act 1953

9. bantu education act 1953

10. the natives resettlement act 1954

what was the prohibition of mixed marriages act 1949?

made marriages between people of different races illegal

what was the population registration act 1950?

- established mechanisms for determining and registering the race of all south africans

- two criteria were used to decide which group (white, coloured, bantu, asian) a person belonged to- 1. actual colour and 2. the verdict of society

- this act established a rigid system of racial classification and identification which determined any individual's access to legal rights in south africa

- with a basic system of identification in place, the nationalist government could then control where and how Africans would live, what rights they could enjoy and those they could not, whom they could marry and so forth

- this law was almost impossible to enforce and 13 years later there were still 20,000 individuals who had not been classified.

what was the immorality amendment act 1950?

- made sexual relations between different races illegal

what was the group areas act 1950?

- each town or city was separated into white, coloured and black areas

- the government could impose control throughout the country over property rights requiring permits, based on race, for ownership and occupation

- most of the country was reserved for whites and out of the 3.5 million people who had to leave their homes under the act between 1951 and 1986, 2% were white

- caused much misery and suffering- some people killed themselves when they found out they were going to be moved

- not implemented effectively- in 1980 over 60% of blacks still lived outside of their areas

what was the suppression of communism act 1950?

- any opposition to the government was treated as communism and therefore banned

- "communist" had a broad definition which included almost all opposition to apartheid and white supremacy- it was defined to include "any activity that aimed to bring about political, social or economic change by disturbance or disorder"

- gave the government extra powers to arrest and hold people without charge, to 'ban' them, so that they could not meet others or take part in politics or to put them under house arrest

- law was easily enforced and highly effective in weakening political opposition- banned the south african communist party

what was the abolition of passes act 1952?

- formal extension of the pass laws which already existed- all blacks now had to carry a reference book once they turned 16

- the reference book contained 96 pages including the owner's photograph, where they lived, their job, fingerprint, etc

- allowed police to stop black people at any time and demand to see their pass -they were assumed guilty unless they could prove they were innocent (a reversal of an important human right)

- they were arrested if they did not have theirs- in a typical year 400,000 may be arrested

- if black people were in an urban area without proper authorisation in their passbook they would be fined and sent to their reserve or 'homeland'

- pass system was emblematic of the degree of control the government intended to exert over the african population and was a daily reminder of the repression under which they lived

what is native laws amendment act 1952?

- intended to bring in strict influx control

- special labour bureaux were set up to control the movement of workers, restrict those allowed into urban areas, and force employers to give priority in jobs to blacks already in urban areas

- banned african women and men from staying in urban areas longer than 72 hours without a special permit stating they were legally emloyed

-effectively used to ensure a constant supply of cheap black labor for whites, while preventing "excess" Black people from remaining in urban areas.

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