Apartheid: A Wound and a Lesson
Evelyn Rivera
Mr. Warden
World Geography
21 March 2013 Apartheid: A Wound and a Lesson
Ask anyone that was alive between 1948 and 1990, what life in South Africa was like. They will most likely mention the concept of apartheid and describe it with vivid, graphic details. They will put in the picture the millions of victims and the thousands of families that were separated, the children who experienced gory scenes that people in this century generally only see in films. They will tell you about the difficulties that they faced raising children in a time that only seemed to get worse day after day. They will share with you the stories of what scarred their lives, what torments them until this day, and what dehumanized their characters. Yes, they were alive, but the only thing that kept them alive was the thought, the optimism, the clinging to hope of one day finally reaching a point where all the suffering would cease. Unfortunately, these citizens of South Africa would have to feel agony, let tears drip down their face, and shed blood for several years to come. Similar to the segregation taking place in the United States in the 1960’s, that the famous activist, Martin Luther King Jr., along with other well-recognized activists, helped put an end to, apartheid, had the same ideals and principles that were around in the early years of the United States. Before learning what the exact meaning of the word apartheid meant, I had a basic idea of what it could mean because of the root word “apart”. Apartheid was the method in which South Africa’s government isolated the rich from the poor citizens, having them experience some of the worst times in South Africa. The rights of the black citizens of South Africa at that time were awfully violated. In fact, blacks had no rights because the government believed in white-supremacy. Before apartheid went to its extremes, it was originally created so that the National Party would have control over the economy that the country
Mr. Warden
World Geography
21 March 2013 Apartheid: A Wound and a Lesson
Ask anyone that was alive between 1948 and 1990, what life in South Africa was like. They will most likely mention the concept of apartheid and describe it with vivid, graphic details. They will put in the picture the millions of victims and the thousands of families that were separated, the children who experienced gory scenes that people in this century generally only see in films. They will tell you about the difficulties that they faced raising children in a time that only seemed to get worse day after day. They will share with you the stories of what scarred their lives, what torments them until this day, and what dehumanized their characters. Yes, they were alive, but the only thing that kept them alive was the thought, the optimism, the clinging to hope of one day finally reaching a point where all the suffering would cease. Unfortunately, these citizens of South Africa would have to feel agony, let tears drip down their face, and shed blood for several years to come. Similar to the segregation taking place in the United States in the 1960’s, that the famous activist, Martin Luther King Jr., along with other well-recognized activists, helped put an end to, apartheid, had the same ideals and principles that were around in the early years of the United States. Before learning what the exact meaning of the word apartheid meant, I had a basic idea of what it could mean because of the root word “apart”. Apartheid was the method in which South Africa’s government isolated the rich from the poor citizens, having them experience some of the worst times in South Africa. The rights of the black citizens of South Africa at that time were awfully violated. In fact, blacks had no rights because the government believed in white-supremacy. Before apartheid went to its extremes, it was originally created so that the National Party would have control over the economy that the country