The 1913 Natives Land Act: How Law Forged Spatial Apartheid
The Story of South Africa: Empire, Apartheid, and Transformation — Fexingo HistoryPlay episode
Show notes
In 1913, South Africa's newly formed Union government passed the Natives Land Act, a law that reserved just 7% of the country's land for black Africans, who made up over two-thirds of the population. This episode unpacks the Act's origins in the 1910 Union, the cynical work of the Beaumont Commission, and the devastating effects on black farmers and sharecroppers. We follow the story of Sol Plaatje, who documented the forced removals and testified against the Act, and examine how the law laid the groundwork for decades of segregation and apartheid. The Act sparked the formation of the South African Native National Congress, later the ANC, and set the stage for a century of land struggles. Lucas and Luna also explore the Act's colonial precedents, from the Glen Grey Act to the hut tax, and why land remains a flashpoint in South Africa today. #1913NativesLandAct #SouthAfricanHistory #Apartheid #LandDispossession #SolPlaatje #BeaumontCommission #SANNC #ANC #UnionOfSouthAfrica #LandAct #Segregation #BlackFarmers #Sharecroppers #ColonialLegacy #LouisBotha #GlenGreyAct #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
