Towards A Democratic South Africa

A compelling account of South Africa’s post-Apartheid democracy At a time when many democracies are under strain around the world, Until We Have Won Our Liberty shines new light on the signal achievements of one of the contemporary era’s most closely watched transitions away from minority rule. South Africa’s democratic development has been messy, fiercely contested, and sometimes violent. But as Evan Lieberman argues, it has also offered a voice to the voiceless, unprecedented levels of government accountability, and tangible improvements in quality of life. Lieberman opens with a first-hand account of the hard-fought 2019 national election, and how it played out in Mogale City, a post-Apartheid municipality created from Black African townships and White Afrikaner suburbs. From this launching point, he examines the complexities of South Africa’s multiracial society and the unprecedented democratic experiment that began with the election of Nelson Mandela in 1994. While acknowledging the enormous challenges many South Africans continue to face—including unemployment, inequality, and discrimination—Lieberman draws on the country’s history and the experience of comparable countries to demonstrate that elected Black-led governments have, without resorting to political extremism, improved the lives of millions. In the context of open and competitive politics, citizens have gained access to housing, basic services, and dignified treatment to a greater extent than during any prior period. Countering much of the conventional wisdom about contemporary South Africa, Until We Have Won Our Liberty offers hope for the enduring impact of democratic ideals.

v. 3: The third volume in the series examines the role of anti-apartheid movements around the world. The global anti-apartheid movement was very successful in creating awareness of the liberation struggle in South Africa, and in contributing to the downfall of the apartheid government. This volume, in 2 parts, brings together analyses which in the main are written by activist scholars with deep roots in the movements and organizations they are writing about.

The third volume in the series examines the role of anti-apartheid movements around the world and their success in both creating awareness of the liberation struggle in South Africa, and in contributing to the downfall of the apartheid government. This volume, in two parts, brings together analysis written by activist scholars with deep roots in the movements and organisations they are writing about. This first part focuses on International Solidarity with the liberation struggle. It covers the contribution of various international organisations, governments and their peoples, and solidarity organisations, to the liberation struggle in South Africa. In particular, the roles of nine western European countries are discussed: West Germany; Belgium; Austria; France; The Netherlands; Portugal; Spain; Greece and Switzerland. The second part focuses on African solidarity, with an emphasis on the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and its Liberation Committee; various countries in the southern African region, including the role that Tanzania and Zambia played; as well as countries in west, east and North Africa. This is a major resource for historians, scholars and anyone interested in the history of South Africa, and will be valued by future generations for its sensitive collection of highly significant historical material.

Sixteen essays consider the role, functions, legitimacy, and capacity of political opposition in South Africa, where there is increasing debate not just about whether democracy will survive, but about the quality of that democracy. Divided along lines of history, ideology, aspiration, race, and ethnicity as well as by more immediate competition for electoral support, South Africa's 12 fragmented opposition parties are seen as struggling against major questions of tactics and strategy. The contributors are researchers and academics in sociology, history, and political science from across South Africa. Distributed by ISBS. c. Book News Inc.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1991.

Twenty years after the end of apartheid, a new generation is building a multiracial democracy in South Africa but remains mired in economic inequality and political conflict. The death of Nelson Mandela in 2013 arrived just short of the twentieth anniversary of South Africa’s first free election, reminding the world of the promise he represented as the nation’s first Black president. Despite significant progress since the early days of this new democracy, frustration is growing as inequalities that once divided the races now grow within them as well. In After Freedom, award-winning sociologist Katherine S. Newman and South African expert Ariane De Lannoy bring alive the voices of the “freedom generation,” who came of age after the end of apartheid. Through the stories of seven ordinary individuals who will inherit the richest, and yet most unequal, country in Africa, Newman and De Lannoy explore how young South Africans, whether Black, White, mixed race, or immigrant, confront the lingering consequences of racial oppression. These intimate portraits illuminate the erosion of old loyalties, the eruption of class divides, and the heated debate over policies designed to redress the evils of apartheid. Even so, the freedom generation remains committed to a united South Africa and is struggling to find its way toward that vision.

This game situates students in the Multiparty Negotiating Process taking place at the World Trade Center in Kempton Park in 1993. South Africa is facing tremendous social anxiety and violence. The object of the talks, and of the game, is to reach consensus for a constitution that will guide a post-apartheid South Africa. The country has immense racial diversity--white, black, Colored, Indian. For the negotiations, however, race turns out to be less critical than cultural, economic, and political diversity. Students are challenged to understand a complex landscape and to navigate a surprising web of alliances. The game focuses on the problem of transitioning a society conditioned to profound inequalities and harsh political repression into a more democratic, egalitarian system. Students will ponder carefully the meaning of democracy as a concept and may find that justice and equality are not always comfortable partners with liberty. While for the majority of South Africans, universal suffrage was a symbol of new democratic beginnings, it seemed to threaten the lives, families, and livelihoods of minorities and parties outside the African National Congress coalition. These deep tensions in the nature of democracy pose important questions about the character of justice and the best mechanisms for reaching national decisions. Free supplementary materials for this textbook are available at the Reacting to the Past website. Visit https://reacting.barnard.edu/instructor-resources, click on the RTTP Game Library link, and create a free account to download what is available.