Life in South Africa 1948 Flashcards
(6 cards)
1
Q
Urbanization and industrialization
A
- Although mainly rural, South Africa grew more industrial and urban in the 20th century.
- This was a result in particular of the growth of the mining industry – gold, diamonds, and precious metals. Which South Africa relied on for much of its wealth.
- Large quantities of diamond had been discovered in the Kimberly region of the Orange Free State in 1867, and gold in the Transvaal in 1887, which led to huge demand for African migrant workers.
- Elsewhere the south African economy remained largely agricultural.
2
Q
Three laws effecting Africans pre-1948
A
- Native Land Act (1913) – Land ownership limited to tribal reserves: 7% of total land in SA.
- Urban Areas Act (1923) – Must live in townships in white areas.
- Native Trusts and Lands Act (1936) – Tribal reserves could be extended to 13.6% of total land area in South Africa.
3
Q
African urbanization
A
- There was always a tension between the desire to prevent African people from moving into white areas and the need for cheap labor.
- In theory, African people worked on temporary contracts and had to return to the tribal areas allocated to them when these contracts ended; in practice it’s estimated that in the period 1919-1939 every African male went to work for a white person at some point in their life.
- By 1946, 23% of African people were living In urban areas – as opposed to 75% of white people, 61% of colored people, and 71% of Indian people.
4
Q
Township life
A
- Transient workers lived either in single-sex barracks or in townships.
- These were special settlements on the edge of urban areas, with basic homes for urban African workers.
- These were often overcrowded, unsanitary and squalid, and were to continue until the end of the apartheid period.
5
Q
Pass laws
A
- All black male migrant workers had to carry passes, a type of internal passport system.
- Each provenance issued its own passes, so there was no centralized system until 1952.
6
Q
A
