Prejudice and Discrimination Tiffany Gibson Sociology November 25, 2012 Matiko Bivins Prejudice and Discrimination When reflecting on my six-month expedition to South Africa, I recognized various aspects of prejudice and discrimination. Although racial categories in South Africa have been abolished, many native countrymen still view themselves and others according to these categories. Race is the classification system to categorize people based on physical characteristics, but has not scientific significance. “Blacks are the largest racial group in South Africa (approximately 79% [of the total population]) (Shutts, Kinzler, Katz, Tredoux, & Spelke, 2011)” consisting of several ethnic groups, such as Khoi-San, Xhosa, Zulu, Ndebele, Sotho, Venda, and Shangaan. Ethnicity is cultural traits shared by a category of people; religion, language, and national origin are types of ethnic classifications. However, the minority of white South Africans have more freedom and opportunities because of the unspoken racial separation within the government and workforce. Khoi-San is the unified name of two ethnic groups, who share physical characteristics and languages of the Bantu region. They are known to have small, short frames, copper-brown skin, high cheekbones, and slanted eyes differentiating them from their dark African counterparts. They are native to the semi-desert regions in South Africa. The Venda live in remote, mountainous region near the southern tip. They are a mix of many cultures, like Central African, Eastern African, Sotho, and Nguni. They speak Tshivenda, and practice polygamy. The Sotho people speak Sesotho, and live in the southern point of the Central Plateau. The separate tribes of the Xhosa have distinct, connect heritages. They speak xhosa, and live near the great lakes in the south region of South Africa. The tribes have rites of passage that symbolize the stages of life from birth to adulthood. Desmond Tutu, and Nelson Mandela are two famous Xhosa speakers and social rights activists. The largest black ethnic group is the Zulu. They live in the eastern coast of South Africa, and have fairly even urban and rural areas. They are mostly Christian, and hold membership in European Churches. Black South Africans dress in various outfits; some wear native clothing, others have on westernized suits and attire, and some are dressed expensively, while others dress poorly, but neat and unmatched and ragged clothes. Among the majority of Blacks in South Africa who live in rural, impoverished lives, cultural traditions are the strongest. Urban blacks, who are westernized, usually speak English or Afrikaans, and have started to depart from aspects of traditional culture. Apartheid, or the Afrikaans word for system of racial segregation, classified four racial groups from 1948 to 1994 in which each class were provided inferior services and products then the one before it. Residential areas were segregated by black, white, coloured, and Asian racial groups. Laws were put into place prohibiting marriage between whites and people of other races. Trains, buses, beaches, hospitals, and park benches were separated by the races allowed on each. There were separate education systems, schools, and universities for blacks in South Africa at this time. Nurses and doctors were expected to only treat those of like race. Since most doctors were white, black hospitals were overcrowded and less sterile. White Africans were permitted better jobs opportunities and better pay. Their children were allowed better education to maintain a privileged position in the labor market. Each black homeland had its own health, police and education system that worked separated from each other. Informal rules about appearance were generally interpreted in terms of social standing and class. Apartheid caused institutional racism, economic contradictions, boycotts, and militant actions because of the segregation. Anti-apartheid organizations attacked people within the Botha government who supported the separation of races. A state of emergency was declared, and a series of negotiations to abolish apartheid were discussed. The added pressure from both white and black Africans within the country increased government doubts about the policy because several parties were opposed to it. The election of 1994 ended apartheid, and Nelson Mandela was sworn in as President. It left an indelible cultural legacy that affects the country today. Discrimination and enduring consciousness between races is deeply rooted into the culture of South Africa. Inter-racial marriage is very limited because society remains racial segregated. Lingering discrimination against Blacks by White employers still persists, and “racial inequalities reflect class stratification rather than racial discrimination” (Seekings, 2008). After the apartheid, black and coloured South Africans use cultural classifications instead of race, but white South Africans still refer to physical appearance or descent to categorize each other. A renewed inclination toward whiteness has deepened racism because racial understanding has grown stronger since the apartheid era. White South Africans continue to be privileged, while most blacks remain poor. South Africans still see South Africa as two nations; a white one and the other African, or black. The apartheid had caused severe racial prejudice and discrimination that has become a customary part of life, and will take a long time for the country to overcome. As I reflect upon my expedition into South Africa for six months, I am able to differentiate between the ethnic groups and their respective racial class standings. The apartheid allowed racial prejudice and discrimination to become a lawful classification of four racial groups. It provided white South Africans a chance to put themselves at the top tier of social standings while remaining a minority to the natives to the country. Apartheid separated races in all aspects of daily living by forcing races to isolate themselves in confines of their own residential areas. After the 1994 election that ended apartheid, the class standings based on racial characteristics remained the same, and things are slowly changing. The changes that come from westernizing South Africa are decrease cultures aspects of native blacks. Hopefully this country can one day overcome the prejudice and discrimination of races that has become deeply imbedded into the country’s way of life, so the future children of the country can live in a better tomorrow without inequalities.

References Seekings, J. (2008, January). The continuing salience of race: Discrimination and diversity in South Africa. Journal of Contemporary African Studies, 26(1), 1-25. Retrieved from http://e his.ebscohost.com/eds/detail?vid=4&hid=22&sid=46cb3017-3649-497b-ad3c-37bb6e7c564d%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=tsh&AN=28865209 Shutts, K., Kinzler, K. D., Katz, R. C., Tredoux, C., & Spelke, E. S. (2011, November). Race preferences in children: insights from South Africa. Development Science, 14(6), 1283-1291. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/detail?vid=6&hid=22&sid=46cb3017-3649-497b-ad3c-37bb6e7c564d%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=a9h&AN=66695422 Sibanda, A. (2011, September). Ethnic Differences in the Living Arrangements of Children in South Africa. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 42(4), 479-503. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/ detail?vid=2&hid=22&sid=46cb3017-3649-497b-ad3c-37bb6e7c564d%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=i3h&AN=64871926