Apartheid: Still present in the South African landscape?

Published in Pouvoirs. Translation of the original French version by the editor.

2025-01-01

Abstract

Apartheid remains key to comprehending South African society and the spaces within it, but must be considered alongside other factors to understand how these spaces have changed. The spatial configurations inherited from this multi-level system of racial segregation do still structure regional inequalities, the evolution of urban spaces, and everyday behavior, but do not in themselves explain the spatial reconfigurations engendered by the country’s economic and political transformations. After thirty years of democracy, the majority of the population have good reason to be disappointed: Increases in inequalities and the stagnation of poor areas, driven by metropolization and globalization, have eclipsed attempts to remedy the injustices caused by colonial conquest and exacerbated by apartheid.