Government, Economy, and the Struggle for Change

Racial inequality in South Africa began long before the word apartheid was used. European settlement and colonial rule had already placed most political power and a large share of the country’s land and wealth in white hands. Black South Africans provided much of the labor for mines, farms, and other businesses but had far fewer political rights and much less control over land.

These earlier systems helped create the conditions for apartheid. In 1948, the National Party gained control of South Africa’s government and began expanding racial segregation through a much larger system of laws. The Afrikaans word apartheid means “apartness,” and the government used racial categories to determine many of the rights and opportunities people had.

The apartheid government classified South Africans into racial groups and created different rules for them. Laws controlled where people could live, travel, attend school, work, and use public facilities. Marriage between people classified into certain different racial groups was also prohibited.

Black South Africans, who made up the majority of the population, did not have equal political rights in the national government. Pass laws required many Black people to carry documents showing where they were permitted to live or work. These laws made racial separation part of everyday life and gave the government enormous control over people’s choices.

Apartheid leaders claimed that racial groups should develop separately, but the system protected the political and economic power of the white minority. The government created areas known as homelands, or Bantustans, and assigned Black South Africans to them. Many of these areas had limited farmland, jobs, resources, and public services.

At the same time, South Africa’s cities, mines, farms, and industries depended heavily on Black workers. Laws often forced workers to live far from their families or travel long distances to jobs. Unequal schools also limited the educational opportunities available to many Black students, which affected the kinds of jobs and income they could pursue later in life.

South Africans resisted apartheid in many different ways. The African National Congress, or ANC, and other organizations organized protests, strikes, boycotts, and campaigns against apartheid laws. Nelson Mandela became one of the best-known leaders of the ANC and the movement against apartheid.

The government responded by banning organizations, arresting activists, censoring information, and using police and military force. Mandela was sentenced to life in prison and spent 27 years behind bars before his release in 1990. Students, workers, religious leaders, community organizers, and many other South Africans also took part in resistance.

Opposition grew outside South Africa as well. People in other countries organized boycotts of South African goods, and some businesses and investors stopped doing business there. Governments also placed economic sanctions on South Africa, showing how economic choices could be used to put pressure on a government.

By the late 1980s, South Africa’s government faced growing resistance at home, international pressure, and serious economic problems. President F. W. de Klerk began negotiations with anti-apartheid leaders, ended bans on several political organizations, and ordered Nelson Mandela’s release from prison in 1990. Negotiations about a new political system continued for several years.

In 1994, South Africa held its first national election in which citizens of all races could vote. The ANC won the election, and Nelson Mandela became president. Apartheid laws ended, and the new democratic government recognized equal citizenship regardless of race.

Ending apartheid changed South Africa’s laws and government, but it did not immediately erase economic differences created over many years. Inequalities in wealth, land ownership, education, employment, and access to services remained. South Africa’s experience shows that government decisions can shape people’s economic opportunities for generations, even after the laws themselves change.