Apartheid

Apartheid refers to the system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination implemented in South Africa between 1948 and 1994. Under apartheid, racial groups were forcibly separated, with laws enforcing unequal access to resources, political rights, education, and public facilities. The system aimed to maintain white supremacy by marginalizing Black and other non-white populations. Sociologists study apartheid to analyze its social, economic, and political impacts, as well as its role in perpetuating systemic inequality and global anti-racist resistance movements. Apartheid remains a critical case study in understanding how institutionalized racism shapes societal structures and the enduring legacies of colonialism.