Anti-racist Movement

Anti-racist movements are organizations or movements that develop actions, policies, and beliefs that oppose racism; more specifically, it is a form of sustained, focused action—actions which are multi-lingual, inter-cultural, inter-abled, and inter-faith—intended at changing institutional policies, systems, and procedures that yield racism. In this paper, therefore, The Anti-Apartheid Struggle in South Africa shall be considered.

The Anti-Apartheid Struggle

Political History

According to history, this struggle began in the establishment of Cape Town in 1652. As it grew, a white minority populated the area, having control over the economy and the government. Bothered by their removing of natives from their lands, nonwhites resisted—an action that only served to worsen their plight. By drawing aid from state legislations, the whites further removed the nonwhites from their lands and severely punished the resistors (Kurtz, 2010). Nevertheless, there was a twist. Since the regime highly depended upon nonwhites for labor and the industrial west for trade, learning the maltreatment permeating the country, both withdrew—leaving the state in a miserably weak condition (Kuperus, 1999).

Strategic Actions

Many strategies were employed in this struggle, but two are worth mentioning—the armed resistance and the departure of nonwhite workers from their various stations. The ANC led the resistance. Not content with the slow results of the nonviolent resistance, the ANC resorted to armed resistance—this change of tactic led to the death of many and yielded less satisfying results. While violence became the form of resistance, workers in Durban, for instance, downed their tools and departed—thus, handing the regime a decided blow (Kurtz, 2010).

Conclusion

Presently, South Africa enjoys Democracy—a form of government that has yielded luscious fruits of peace and order. Nevertheless, in retrospect, this came as a result of a long, hard-fought struggle. Even though racism still plagues and plights millions, if battled with determined tenacity, it will end.