Politics & Society
259 records
ArticleEnd Conscription Campaign (ECC)
In the late 1970s four young men publicly refused to obey their army call-ups by the South African Defence Force (SADF) and were sentenced…
ArticleNon-European Unity Movement (NEUM)
This article was written by Baruch Hirson A Short history of the Non-European Unity – An insider's view Where is the Non-European Unity…
ArticleAzanian People’s Organization (AZAPO)
In aftermath of the June 16 Uprising, the government cracked down on student activists and organisations alike. On 19 October 1977 the…
ArticlePan Africanist Congress (PAC)
The Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) is a political party whose presence in the South African political landscape spans just over half a…
ArticleSouth African Indian Congress (SAIC)
The period 1860-1923 is characterised firstly by the introduction of indentured Indian labourers into Natal and of the "passenger" Indians…
ArticleNational Union of South African Students (NUSAS)
In 1924 the National Union of South African Students (NUSAS) was founded aimed at representing and promoting the interests of university…
ArticleSouth African Communist Party (SACP)
On 30 July 2011, the South African Communist Party (SACP) celebrated its 90th anniversary. Initially known as the Communist Party of South…
Afrikaner
From European to "Africaander” The modern Afrikaner is descended mainly from Western Europeans who settled on the southern tip of Africa…
ArticleA history of Indians in South Africa Timeline: 1654-2008
This is a collection of timelines of Indians in South Africa from 1654 until 2008.
ArticleIndian South Africans
From bondage to freedom - The 160th anniversary of the arrival of Indian workers in South Africa The feature on Indian South Africans…
ArticleDefiance Campaign 1952
The post-1948 period saw the African National Congress (ANC) abandoning its traditional reliance on tactics of moderation such as petitions…
ArticleAfrican nationalism and working-class & popular protests, 1910-1924
General Louis Botha headed the first government of the new Union of South Africa, with General Jan Smuts as his deputy. Their South African…
ArticleSouth African Communist Party Timeline 1870-1996
Explore some of the key moments and events that have helped shape the course of South African Communist Party. Follow the links for more…
ArticleAfrican National Congress (ANC)
The African National Congress (ANC) is South Africa's governing party and has been in power since the transition to democracy in April 1994…
ArticleuMkhonto weSizwe (MK)
On 16 December, 1961, Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) was launched as an armed wing of the African National Congress (ANC). The formation of the…
ArticleThe South African Communist Party and May Day – Some Key Moments
May Day celebrated on 1 May annually, is a celebration of workers and their work. It has a long history, being a day of commemoration and…
ArticlePass Laws in South Africa
The Pass Laws was a system used to control the movement of Black, Indian and Coloured people in South Africa. The pass said which areas a…
ArticleHow Unique was Slavery at the Cape?
The first slaves arrived at the Cape in 1658, despite Jan van Riebeeck's several prior attempts at requesting slaves for the settlement…
ArticleLouis van Mauritius and the Slave Revolt of 1808
The unique nature of slavery in the Cape Colony hindered many attempts at wide-scale resistance on the part of Cape slaves. Instead many…
ArticleCulture and Resistance Conference, Botswana, 1982
Several hundred artists and activists from South Africa living in exile and within the country, as well as foreign nationals, were hosted…
The International Socialist League (ISL)
The International Socialist League (ISL) was formed in September 1915. It was created by a progressive faction of the South African Labour…
ArticleSS Mendi
The sinking of the SS Mendi was caused by the reckless action of the captain of the SS Darro. It remains the greatest wartime maritime…
ArticleStaffrider magazine (1978-1993)
Introduction Staffrider was a South African literary and arts magazine published by Ravan Press in Johannesburg from 1978 to 1993. It…
ArticleA history of Apartheid in South Africa
Background and policy of apartheidBefore we can look at the history of the apartheid period it is necessary to understand what apartheid…
ArticleA Charge of Treason by Norman Levy
This article was taken from the book The Final Prize by Norman Levy (Chapter 12) A Charge of Treason When detectives invaded the Congress…
ArticleStrong and Unnoticed: The Women of the UDF by Reid Arnold
Abstract The UDF was an umbrella organization that was founded to unify the hundreds of Anti-Apartheid movements occurring in the 1980s…
ArticleA history of prison labour in South Africa
Prison labour has a particularly debatable history in South Africa. Historically, South Africa operated on the understanding that prisons…
ArticleThe Empty Land Myth
The Empty or Vacant Land Theory is a theory that was propagated by European settlers in nineteenth-century South Africa to support their…
ArticleThe Early Cape Slave Trade
The year 1658 marks the beginning of the slave trade at the Cape colony. During the first four years of the Dutch East India Company (VOC)…
ArticleConstitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, was drawn up by the Parliament elected in 1994 in the first non-racial elections…