Instructions
This worksheet explores the history of South Africa, focusing on the rise and fall of Apartheid. Read each question carefully and provide detailed, evidence-based answers. Use your knowledge of the period to analyze the sources and form your arguments.
Section 1: The Architecture of Apartheid
This section examines the ideological and legal foundations of the Apartheid system established in 1948.
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Matching: Match the following Apartheid laws with their correct description.
Laws
A. Population Registration Act (1950)
B. Group Areas Act (1950)
C. Bantu Education Act (1953)
D. Reservation of Separate Amenities Act (1953)Descriptions
1. Legalized racial segregation in public premises, vehicles, and services.
2. Classified every South African into one of four racial groups: "White," "Coloured," "Indian," or "Black."
3. Established a separate, and deliberately inferior, system of education for Black South Africans.
4. Forced physical separation between races by creating racially segregated residential and business sections in urban areas.
- Short Answer: Distinguish between the concepts of "petty apartheid" and "grand apartheid." Provide one example of each to illustrate your point.
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Source Analysis: Read the following quote from Hendrik Verwoerd, a key architect of Apartheid, and answer the question that follows.
"There is no place for [the Bantu] in the European community above the level of certain forms of labour ... What is the use of teaching the Bantu child mathematics when it cannot use it in practice? That is quite absurd. Education must train people in accordance with their opportunities in life, according to the sphere in which they live."
In what ways does this quote reveal the economic and social objectives of the Apartheid state's education policy?
Section 2: Resistance and Repression
This section focuses on the anti-apartheid movement and the state's response.
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Chronology & Significance: Arrange the following events in chronological order. Then, choose two of the events and briefly explain their historical significance.
- The Soweto Uprising
- The Sharpeville Massacre
- The Rivonia Trial
- Nelson Mandela is released from prison
- Compare and Contrast: Compare the strategies of the African National Congress (ANC) during the Defiance Campaign of the 1950s with the strategies employed by its armed wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), from 1961 onwards. What pivotal event prompted this shift in strategy?
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Multiple Choice: Who was a prominent leader of the Black Consciousness Movement, which emphasized Black pride and psychological liberation, and was murdered in police custody in 1977?
- Walter Sisulu
- Desmond Tutu
- Steve Biko
- Oliver Tambo
Section 3: The Transition to Democracy
This section explores the end of Apartheid and the challenges of building a new South Africa.
- Critical Thinking: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, was a central part of South Africa's transition. What were the two primary goals of the TRC? Discuss one major success and one significant criticism of its work.
- Short Essay: Analyze the relative importance of internal resistance versus international pressure in bringing an end to Apartheid. In your view, which factor was more decisive? Justify your answer with specific examples (e.g., specific protests, sanctions, boycotts).
Answer Key
Section 1: The Architecture of Apartheid
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Matching:
- A - 2
- B - 4
- C - 3
- D - 1
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Short Answer:
- Petty Apartheid refers to the day-to-day segregation of facilities and public spaces, such as separate benches, beaches, and entrances. Its goal was to ensure social separation and daily humiliation. Example: The Reservation of Separate Amenities Act.
- Grand Apartheid refers to the large-scale, long-term policy of territorial segregation, which aimed to strip Black South Africans of their citizenship and relegate them to designated "homelands" or "Bantustans." Example: The creation of the Bantustans.
- Source Analysis: The quote reveals that the economic objective was to create a permanent, subservient Black labor force for the "European community" (white-owned businesses and farms). The social objective was to enforce a racial hierarchy by denying Black South Africans access to education that would allow them to compete for skilled jobs or positions of authority, thus limiting their social mobility and reinforcing the idea of white supremacy.
Section 2: Resistance and Repression
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Chronology & Significance:
- Order: 1. The Sharpeville Massacre (1960), 2. The Rivonia Trial (1963-64), 3. The Soweto Uprising (1976), 4. Nelson Mandela is released from prison (1990).
- Significance (examples):
- Sharpeville Massacre: A turning point where police killed 69 unarmed protestors. It led to the banning of the ANC and PAC, and convinced many in the anti-apartheid movement that non-violent protest was no longer viable, directly leading to the formation of an armed wing.
- Soweto Uprising: A massive student-led protest against the forced use of Afrikaans in schools. The brutal state response killed hundreds of young people, re-energizing the anti-apartheid struggle both internally and internationally, and drawing a new generation into the movement.
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Compare and Contrast:
- Defiance Campaign (1950s): The ANC employed strategies of non-violent civil disobedience, influenced by Gandhi. Tactics included deliberately breaking apartheid laws (like pass laws) to overwhelm the prison system and highlight the injustice of the laws.
- Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) (1961+): After non-violent methods were met with state violence, MK adopted a strategy of armed struggle. Initially, this focused on sabotage of strategic state infrastructure (e.g., power plants, transport links) to harm the apartheid economy without causing civilian casualties.
- Pivotal Event: The Sharpeville Massacre of 1960 was the key event that prompted this shift, as it demonstrated the state's willingness to use lethal force against peaceful protestors.
- Multiple Choice: c) Steve Biko
Section 3: The Transition to Democracy
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Critical Thinking:
- Goals: 1) To uncover the truth about gross human rights violations committed during Apartheid by all sides. 2) To grant amnesty to perpetrators who gave a full and truthful account of their actions, with the aim of promoting reconciliation over retribution.
- Success: It provided a public platform for victims to tell their stories, officially validating their suffering and creating a comprehensive historical record of the atrocities of Apartheid.
- Criticism: Many felt that it allowed perpetrators of horrific crimes to escape justice ("justice was sacrificed for truth"). Some victims' families felt that amnesty was granted too easily and that true reconciliation could not be achieved without punishment.
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Short Essay: A strong answer should acknowledge that both factors were crucial and interconnected.
- Arguments for Internal Resistance being decisive: Maintained constant pressure on the state; made the country ungovernable through mass protests, strikes, and boycotts (e.g., Soweto Uprising, trade union actions); armed struggle, while not a military threat, created a climate of instability; moral leadership of figures like Mandela and Biko inspired generations.
- Arguments for International Pressure being decisive: Economic sanctions and financial boycotts crippled the South African economy, making Apartheid unsustainable; the sports and cultural boycotts isolated the white population and damaged national pride; diplomatic isolation made South Africa a pariah state.
- Conclusion: A sophisticated answer will argue that internal resistance created the conditions (instability, moral crisis) that made international pressure effective. The international community was responding to the visible struggle within South Africa. Therefore, while international pressure was the final blow that made the economic cost too high, it was built upon the foundation of decades of internal resistance.