Transformation from Below? White Suburbia in the Transformation of Apartheid South Africa to Democracy (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9783905758580)

South Africa is an example of a relatively successful political transition. Nevertheless, the first democratic elections in 1994 did not change the systemic and structural inequalities, the socioeconomic legacies of discrimination or the alienation of the different population groups. At the centre of this study is the transformation potential of two formerly white neighbourhoods in Johannesburg - Norwood and Orange Grove. Both neighbourhoods have experienced considerable demographic changes and the various population groups differ in terms of their expectations and their willingness to adjust to the changes provoked by the transition. At the local level, patterns of discrimination and oppression continue. Spaces, opportunities and leverage of social networks engaged in the community are influenced by the resources people are able to access. Moreover, cooperation is contested in a context of pervasive inequality because there is no incentive for privileged groups to change arrangements that benefit them. In this context of conflicting interests and unequal access to power and resources, decentralisation and the promotion of participatory structures in local communities are a problem and the reliance on local networks as agents of development is questionable.

Author: Ursula Scheidegger
ISBN-10: 390575858X
ISBN-13: 9783905758580
Publisher: Basler Afrika Bibliographien
Language: English
Published: 08/07/2015
Pages: 178
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.65lbs
Size: 9.61h x 6.69w x 0.38d