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Gr. 12 HISTORY Revision: The Civil Rights Movement

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Civil Rights Movement 1950 to 1970 essay: Black Power Movement History Grade 12

Civil Rights Movement 1950 to 1970 essay: Black Power Movement History Grade 12 memo and answer guide.

Table of Contents

CIVIL SOCIETY PROTESTS FROM THE 1950s TO THE 1970s: BLACK POWER MOVEMENT

Explain to what extent did Black Power Movement influence the actions of African Americans in the 1960s. Use relevant examples to support your line of argument.

[Plan and construct an original argument based on relevant evidence using analytical and interpretative skills.]

Candidates should indicate to what extent the Black Power Movement influenced the actions of African Americans in the 1960s. Candidates should use relevant examples to support their line of argument.

MAIN ASPECTS

Candidates should include the following aspects in their response:

Introduction: Candidates should indicate to what extent the Black Power Movement influenced the actions of African Americans in the 1960s.

ELABORATION

Origins of the Movement:

• The Black Power Movement came out of dissatisfaction with the Civil Rights Movements.
• The Civil Rights Movement had focused on black and white Americans working together but inequalities remained. African Americans still faced poverty and racial discrimination.
• Some African American were disappointed with the Civil Rights Movement and believed that King was too moderate
• They wanted change in the USA to happen faster and they were prepared to use violence to do this.
• Black Power Movement promoted black pride, unity and self- reliance
• Black nationalists believed that the use of force was justified in order to gain social, political and economic power for Black Americans

Role of Malcolm X:

• Malcolm X, leading figure in the Black Power Movement, powerful speaker and dedicated human rights activist
• In 1952 he became a leading member of the nation of Islam, a black Muslim group which believed that white society was holding African Americans back and they desired separation of races
• Eloquence and charisma attracted many new members to this organisation membership grew from 500 in 1952 to 30 000 in 1963
• Promoted the use of violence to achieve the aims of Black Power
• Challenged the peaceful approach of Martin Luther King Jnr
• After a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1963-1964, Malcolm X changed his ideas about integration as he had seen how Muslims of all nationalities and races could live together peacefully
• Founded the Organisation of Afro-American unity in 1964. He became less militant and adopted views that were not popular with black nationalists

The Black Panther

• Huey Newton and Bobby Searle formed the Black Panther Party (BPP) for Self Defence in 1966
• They aimed to protect African American neighbourhoods from police brutality and racism
• The Black Panthers promoted African Americans carrying guns to defend themselves
• The idea of Black Power scared many white Americans
• The BPP started programmes to help ease poverty in Black communities such as Free Breakfast for Children, feeding thousands of poor and hungry black children everyday
• Clinics where adults and children could get free medical care
• A tutoring scheme to help black children succeed at school
• The BPP drew up a ten-point programme that included the following demands:
• Full employment and an end to capitalism that preyed on the African American community
• Descent housing and education for African Americans
• An end to police brutality
• The Black panthers were very popular in the 1960s as they were involved in defending the rights of both workers and ethnic minorities like the African American communities in the ghettoes

The role of Stokely Carmichael

• Stokely Carmichael joined the Civil Rights Movement when he saw the bravery of those involved in a sit-in
• Became a member of SNCC and a Freedom Rider
• His commitment to Martin Luther King’s passive resistance ideals changed in 1966 after James Meredith, a civil rights activist engaged in a peaceful protest march, was shot
• Carmichael and other activists continued on the march to honour Meredith and during the march he was arrested
• When he was released from jail, Carmichael made a famous speech using the term ‘Black Power’ for the first time and he urged African Americans to take pride in being black
• He was in favour of African dress and Afro hairstyles
• He wanted African Americans to recognise their heritage and build a sense of community
• He also adopted the slogan ‘Black is beautiful’ which promoted pride in being black
• Carmichael started to criticise other leaders, like King, and how they wanted to work with whites
• He later left the SNCC and joined the BPP where he promoted the Black Power Movement as a leader, speaker and writer
• He later wrote a book linking Black Power to Pan-Africanism
• Any other relevant answer Conclusion: Candidates should tie up their argument with relevant conclusion

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Civil Rights Movement 1950 to 1970 essay: Black Power Movement History Grade 12

Civil Rights Movement 1950 to 1970 essay: Black Power Movement History Grade 12 memo and answer guide.

CIVIL SOCIETY PROTESTS FROM THE 1950s TO THE 1970s: BLACK POWER MOVEMENT

Explain to what extent did Black Power Movement influence the actions of African Americans in the 1960s. Use relevant examples to support your line of argument.

[Plan and construct an original argument based on relevant evidence using analytical and interpretative skills.]

Candidates should indicate to what extent the Black Power Movement influenced the actions of African Americans in the 1960s. Candidates should use relevant examples to support their line of argument.

MAIN ASPECTS

Candidates should include the following aspects in their response:

Introduction: Candidates should indicate to what extent the Black Power Movement influenced the actions of African Americans in the 1960s.

ELABORATION

Origins of the Movement:

• The Black Power Movement came out of dissatisfaction with the Civil Rights Movements.
• The Civil Rights Movement had focused on black and white Americans working together but inequalities remained. African Americans still faced poverty and racial discrimination.
• Some African American were disappointed with the Civil Rights Movement and believed that King was too moderate
• They wanted change in the USA to happen faster and they were prepared to use violence to do this.
• Black Power Movement promoted black pride, unity and self- reliance
• Black nationalists believed that the use of force was justified in order to gain social, political and economic power for Black Americans

Role of Malcolm X:

• Malcolm X, leading figure in the Black Power Movement, powerful speaker and dedicated human rights activist
• In 1952 he became a leading member of the nation of Islam, a black Muslim group which believed that white society was holding African Americans back and they desired separation of races
• Eloquence and charisma attracted many new members to this organisation membership grew from 500 in 1952 to 30 000 in 1963
• Promoted the use of violence to achieve the aims of Black Power
• Challenged the peaceful approach of Martin Luther King Jnr
• After a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1963-1964, Malcolm X changed his ideas about integration as he had seen how Muslims of all nationalities and races could live together peacefully
• Founded the Organisation of Afro-American unity in 1964. He became less militant and adopted views that were not popular with black nationalists

The Black Panther

• Huey Newton and Bobby Searle formed the Black Panther Party (BPP) for Self Defence in 1966
• They aimed to protect African American neighbourhoods from police brutality and racism
• The Black Panthers promoted African Americans carrying guns to defend themselves
• The idea of Black Power scared many white Americans
• The BPP started programmes to help ease poverty in Black communities such as Free Breakfast for Children, feeding thousands of poor and hungry black children everyday
• Clinics where adults and children could get free medical care
• A tutoring scheme to help black children succeed at school
• The BPP drew up a ten-point programme that included the following demands:
• Full employment and an end to capitalism that preyed on the African American community
• Descent housing and education for African Americans
• An end to police brutality
• The Black panthers were very popular in the 1960s as they were involved in defending the rights of both workers and ethnic minorities like the African American communities in the ghettoes

The role of Stokely Carmichael

• Stokely Carmichael joined the Civil Rights Movement when he saw the bravery of those involved in a sit-in
• Became a member of SNCC and a Freedom Rider
• His commitment to Martin Luther King’s passive resistance ideals changed in 1966 after James Meredith, a civil rights activist engaged in a peaceful protest march, was shot
• Carmichael and other activists continued on the march to honour Meredith and during the march he was arrested
• When he was released from jail, Carmichael made a famous speech using the term ‘Black Power’ for the first time and he urged African Americans to take pride in being black
• He was in favour of African dress and Afro hairstyles
• He wanted African Americans to recognise their heritage and build a sense of community
• He also adopted the slogan ‘Black is beautiful’ which promoted pride in being black
• Carmichael started to criticise other leaders, like King, and how they wanted to work with whites
• He later left the SNCC and joined the BPP where he promoted the Black Power Movement as a leader, speaker and writer
• He later wrote a book linking Black Power to Pan-Africanism
• Any other relevant answer Conclusion: Candidates should tie up their argument with relevant conclusion

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Course: US history   >   Unit 8

Introduction to the civil rights movement.

• African American veterans and the Civil Rights Movement
• Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
• Emmett Till
• The Montgomery Bus Boycott
• "Massive Resistance" and the Little Rock Nine
• The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom
• The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965
• SNCC and CORE

Black Power

• The Civil Rights Movement
• The Civil Rights Movement is an umbrella term for the many varieties of activism that sought to secure full political, social, and economic rights for African Americans in the period from 1946 to 1968.
• Civil rights activism involved a diversity of approaches, from bringing lawsuits in court, to lobbying the federal government, to mass direct action, to black power.
• The efforts of civil rights activists resulted in many substantial victories, but also met with the fierce opposition of white supremacists .

The emergence of the Civil Rights Movement

Civil rights and the supreme court, nonviolent protest and civil disobedience, the unfinished business of the civil rights movement, what do you think.

• See Richard S. Newman, The Transformation of American Abolitionism: Fighting Slavery in the Early Republic (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2002).
• See C. Vann Woodward, The Strange Career of Jim Crow (New York: Oxford University Press, 1955).
• See Edward L. Ayers, The Promise of the New South: Life After Reconstruction (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992).
• See Daniel Kryder, Divided Arsenal: Race and the American State during World War II (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000); and Stephen Tuck,  Fog of War: The Second World War and the Civil Rights Movement (New York: Oxford University Press, 2012).
• See Michael J. Klarman, Brown v. Board of Education and the Civil Rights Movement (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).
• See Peniel E. Joseph, Waiting ‘Til the Midnight Hour: A Narrative History of Black Power in America (New York: Henry Holt, 2006).
• See Michael Eric Dyson, The Black Presidency: Barack Obama and the Politics of Race in America (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016).
• See Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (New York: The New Press, 2010).
• See Tavis Smiley, ed., The Covenant with Black America: Ten Years Later (Carlsbad, CA: Hay House, Inc., 2016).

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Civil Rights Movement

By: History.com Editors

Updated: January 22, 2024 | Original: October 27, 2009

The civil rights movement was a struggle for social justice that took place mainly during the 1950s and 1960s for Black Americans to gain equal rights under the law in the United States. The Civil War officially abolished slavery , but it didn’t end discrimination against Black people—they continued to endure the devastating effects of racism, especially in the South. By the mid-20th century, Black Americans, along with many other Americans, mobilized and began an unprecedented fight for equality that spanned two decades.

Jim Crow Laws

During Reconstruction , Black people took on leadership roles like never before. They held public office and sought legislative changes for equality and the right to vote.

In 1868, the 14th Amendment to the Constitution gave Black people equal protection under the law. In 1870, the 15th Amendment granted Black American men the right to vote. Still, many white Americans, especially those in the South, were unhappy that people they’d once enslaved were now on a more-or-less equal playing field.

To marginalize Black people, keep them separate from white people and erase the progress they’d made during Reconstruction, “ Jim Crow ” laws were established in the South beginning in the late 19th century. Black people couldn’t use the same public facilities as white people, live in many of the same towns or go to the same schools. Interracial marriage was illegal, and most Black people couldn’t vote because they were unable to pass voter literacy tests.

Jim Crow laws weren’t adopted in northern states; however, Black people still experienced discrimination at their jobs or when they tried to buy a house or get an education. To make matters worse, laws were passed in some states to limit voting rights for Black Americans.

Moreover, southern segregation gained ground in 1896 when the U.S. Supreme Court declared in Plessy v. Ferguson that facilities for Black and white people could be “separate but equal."

World War II and Civil Rights

Prior to World War II , most Black people worked as low-wage farmers, factory workers, domestics or servants. By the early 1940s, war-related work was booming, but most Black Americans weren’t given better-paying jobs. They were also discouraged from joining the military.

After thousands of Black people threatened to march on Washington to demand equal employment rights, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802 on June 25, 1941. It opened national defense jobs and other government jobs to all Americans regardless of race, creed, color or national origin.

Black men and women served heroically in World War II, despite suffering segregation and discrimination during their deployment. The Tuskegee Airmen broke the racial barrier to become the first Black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps and earned more than 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses. Yet many Black veterans were met with prejudice and scorn upon returning home. This was a stark contrast to why America had entered the war to begin with—to defend freedom and democracy in the world.

As the Cold War began, President Harry Truman initiated a civil rights agenda, and in 1948 issued Executive Order 9981 to end discrimination in the military. These events helped set the stage for grass-roots initiatives to enact racial equality legislation and incite the civil rights movement.

On December 1, 1955, a 42-year-old woman named Rosa Parks found a seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus after work. Segregation laws at the time stated Black passengers must sit in designated seats at the back of the bus, and Parks complied.

When a white man got on the bus and couldn’t find a seat in the white section at the front of the bus, the bus driver instructed Parks and three other Black passengers to give up their seats. Parks refused and was arrested.

As word of her arrest ignited outrage and support, Parks unwittingly became the “mother of the modern-day civil rights movement.” Black community leaders formed the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) led by Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr ., a role which would place him front and center in the fight for civil rights.

Parks’ courage incited the MIA to stage a boycott of the Montgomery bus system . The Montgomery Bus Boycott lasted 381 days. On November 14, 1956, the Supreme Court ruled segregated seating was unconstitutional. 

Little Rock Nine

In 1954, the civil rights movement gained momentum when the United States Supreme Court made segregation illegal in public schools in the case of Brown v. Board of Education . In 1957, Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas asked for volunteers from all-Black high schools to attend the formerly segregated school.

On September 4, 1957, nine Black students, known as the Little Rock Nine , arrived at Central High School to begin classes but were instead met by the Arkansas National Guard (on order of Governor Orval Faubus) and a screaming, threatening mob. The Little Rock Nine tried again a couple of weeks later and made it inside, but had to be removed for their safety when violence ensued.

Finally, President Dwight D. Eisenhower intervened and ordered federal troops to escort the Little Rock Nine to and from classes at Central High. Still, the students faced continual harassment and prejudice.

Their efforts, however, brought much-needed attention to the issue of desegregation and fueled protests on both sides of the issue.

Civil Rights Act of 1957

Even though all Americans had gained the right to vote, many southern states made it difficult for Black citizens. They often required prospective voters of color to take literacy tests that were confusing, misleading and nearly impossible to pass.

Wanting to show a commitment to the civil rights movement and minimize racial tensions in the South, the Eisenhower administration pressured Congress to consider new civil rights legislation.

On September 9, 1957, President Eisenhower signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 into law, the first major civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. It allowed federal prosecution of anyone who tried to prevent someone from voting. It also created a commission to investigate voter fraud.

Sit-In at Woolworth's Lunch Counter

Despite making some gains, Black Americans still experienced blatant prejudice in their daily lives. On February 1, 1960, four college students took a stand against segregation in Greensboro, North Carolina when they refused to leave a Woolworth’s lunch counter without being served.

Over the next several days, hundreds of people joined their cause in what became known as the Greensboro sit-ins. After some were arrested and charged with trespassing, protesters launched a boycott of all segregated lunch counters until the owners caved and the original four students were finally served at the Woolworth’s lunch counter where they’d first stood their ground.

Their efforts spearheaded peaceful sit-ins and demonstrations in dozens of cities and helped launch the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee to encourage all students to get involved in the civil rights movement. It also caught the eye of young college graduate Stokely Carmichael , who joined the SNCC during the Freedom Summer of 1964 to register Black voters in Mississippi. In 1966, Carmichael became the chair of the SNCC, giving his famous speech in which he originated the phrase "Black power.”

Freedom Riders

On May 4, 1961, 13 “ Freedom Riders ”—seven Black and six white activists–mounted a Greyhound bus in Washington, D.C. , embarking on a bus tour of the American south to protest segregated bus terminals. They were testing the 1960 decision by the Supreme Court in Boynton v. Virginia that declared the segregation of interstate transportation facilities unconstitutional.

Facing violence from both police officers and white protesters, the Freedom Rides drew international attention. On Mother’s Day 1961, the bus reached Anniston, Alabama, where a mob mounted the bus and threw a bomb into it. The Freedom Riders escaped the burning bus but were badly beaten. Photos of the bus engulfed in flames were widely circulated, and the group could not find a bus driver to take them further. U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (brother to President John F. Kennedy ) negotiated with Alabama Governor John Patterson to find a suitable driver, and the Freedom Riders resumed their journey under police escort on May 20. But the officers left the group once they reached Montgomery, where a white mob brutally attacked the bus. Attorney General Kennedy responded to the riders—and a call from Martin Luther King Jr.—by sending federal marshals to Montgomery.

On May 24, 1961, a group of Freedom Riders reached Jackson, Mississippi. Though met with hundreds of supporters, the group was arrested for trespassing in a “whites-only” facility and sentenced to 30 days in jail. Attorneys for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ( NAACP ) brought the matter to the U.S. Supreme Court, which reversed the convictions. Hundreds of new Freedom Riders were drawn to the cause, and the rides continued.

In the fall of 1961, under pressure from the Kennedy administration, the Interstate Commerce Commission issued regulations prohibiting segregation in interstate transit terminals

March on Washington

Arguably one of the most famous events of the civil rights movement took place on August 28, 1963: the March on Washington . It was organized and attended by civil rights leaders such as A. Philip Randolph , Bayard Rustin and Martin Luther King Jr.

More than 200,000 people of all races congregated in Washington, D. C. for the peaceful march with the main purpose of forcing civil rights legislation and establishing job equality for everyone. The highlight of the march was King’s speech in which he continually stated, “I have a dream…”

King’s “ I Have a Dream” speech galvanized the national civil rights movement and became a slogan for equality and freedom.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 —legislation initiated by President John F. Kennedy before his assassination —into law on July 2 of that year.

King and other civil rights activists witnessed the signing. The law guaranteed equal employment for all, limited the use of voter literacy tests and allowed federal authorities to ensure public facilities were integrated.

Bloody Sunday

On March 7, 1965, the civil rights movement in Alabama took an especially violent turn as 600 peaceful demonstrators participated in the Selma to Montgomery march to protest the killing of Black civil rights activist Jimmie Lee Jackson by a white police officer and to encourage legislation to enforce the 15th amendment.

As the protesters neared the Edmund Pettus Bridge, they were blocked by Alabama state and local police sent by Alabama Governor George C. Wallace, a vocal opponent of desegregation. Refusing to stand down, protesters moved forward and were viciously beaten and teargassed by police and dozens of protesters were hospitalized.

The entire incident was televised and became known as “ Bloody Sunday .” Some activists wanted to retaliate with violence, but King pushed for nonviolent protests and eventually gained federal protection for another march.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

When President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law on August 6, 1965, he took the Civil Rights Act of 1964 several steps further. The new law banned all voter literacy tests and provided federal examiners in certain voting jurisdictions. 

It also allowed the attorney general to contest state and local poll taxes. As a result, poll taxes were later declared unconstitutional in Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections in 1966.

Part of the Act was walked back decades later, in 2013, when a Supreme Court decision ruled that Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act was unconstitutional, holding that the constraints placed on certain states and federal review of states' voting procedures were outdated.

Civil Rights Leaders Assassinated

The civil rights movement had tragic consequences for two of its leaders in the late 1960s. On February 21, 1965, former Nation of Islam leader and Organization of Afro-American Unity founder Malcolm X was assassinated at a rally.

On April 4, 1968, civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on his hotel room's balcony. Emotionally-charged looting and riots followed, putting even more pressure on the Johnson administration to push through additional civil rights laws.

Fair Housing Act of 1968

The Fair Housing Act became law on April 11, 1968, just days after King’s assassination. It prevented housing discrimination based on race, sex, national origin and religion. It was also the last legislation enacted during the civil rights era.

The civil rights movement was an empowering yet precarious time for Black Americans. The efforts of civil rights activists and countless protesters of all races brought about legislation to end segregation, Black voter suppression and discriminatory employment and housing practices.

A Brief History of Jim Crow. Constitutional Rights Foundation. Civil Rights Act of 1957. Civil Rights Digital Library. Document for June 25th: Executive Order 8802: Prohibition of Discrimination in the Defense Industry. National Archives. Greensboro Lunch Counter Sit-In. African American Odyssey. Little Rock School Desegregation (1957).  The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute Stanford . Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Global Freedom Struggle. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute Stanford . Rosa Marie Parks Biography. Rosa and Raymond Parks. Selma, Alabama, (Bloody Sunday, March 7, 1965). BlackPast.org. The Civil Rights Movement (1919-1960s). National Humanities Center. The Little Rock Nine. National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site. Turning Point: World War II. Virginia Historical Society.

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Grade 12 History Essay: Black Power Movement USA

Subject: History

Age range: 16+

Resource type: Assessment and revision

Last updated

13 February 2024

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The Black Power Movement Essay explores the historical and social significance of the Black Power Movement that emerged in the 1960s. This essay examines the key ideologies, leaders, and activities that shaped the movement and analyzes its impact on the African American community and the broader civil rights movement.

The essay begins by providing a brief overview of the historical context in which the Black Power Movement emerged, including the Civil Rights Movement and the socio-political climate of the time. It then delves into the core principles of the movement, such as self-determination, racial pride, and the rejection of nonviolence as the sole strategy for achieving racial equality.

The essay explores the influential figures within the Black Power Movement, including Stokely Carmichael, Angela Davis, and Huey P. Newton. It discusses their roles as leaders and their contributions to the movement’s ideology and activism. Additionally, the essay highlights significant events and organizations associated with the movement, such as the Black Panther Party and the National Black Power Conferences.

Furthermore, the essay examines the impact of the Black Power Movement on the African American community and the broader civil rights movement. It analyzes how the movement challenged traditional civil rights strategies and redefined notions of Black identity and empowerment. The essay also discusses the movement’s influence on subsequent activist movements and its lasting legacy in contemporary social and political discourse.

Overall, the Black Power Movement Essay provides a comprehensive analysis of this significant chapter in American history, shedding light on its ideologies, leaders, impact, and lasting relevance in the fight for racial justice and equality.

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Home — Essay Samples — History — Civil Rights Movement — The Significance of the Civil Rights Movement

The Significance of The Civil Rights Movement

• Categories: Civil Rights Movement

About this sample

Words: 729 |

Published: Jan 29, 2024

Words: 729 | Pages: 2 | 4 min read

Table of contents

Historical context, key figures and organizations, major events and tactics, legislation and supreme court cases, opposition and resistance, impact and legacy of the civil rights movement.

• "The Civil Rights Movement and the Politics of Memory" by James M. Lawson Jr. Harvard University Press, 2006.
• "Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63" by Taylor Branch. Simon & Schuster, 1988.
• "At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance--A New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power" by Danielle L. McGuire. Vintage, 2011.
• "Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Movement , 1954-1985" directed by Henry Hampton. Blackside, 1987.

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Grade 12 - Civil Resistance in South Africa 1970s to 1980

What was the nature of the civil society resistance after the 1960s?

During the 1960s and the 1980s South Africa was ruled by the National Party. The NP government imposed the apartheid system and could only be voted for by white people. The apartheid system was greatly criticised by the overseas community and was also strongly opposed by resistance movements like the 1976 Soweto Uprising and by underground movements which operated both in South Africa, and in other African countries these included the African National Congress (ANC).

The challenge of Black Consciousness to the Apartheid state

See: http://www.sahistory.org.za/article/black-consciousness-movement-bcm

The crisis of Apartheid in the 1980s

By the 1980s the apartheid system was beginning to weaken. It could no longer keep black people in their Bantu homelands or remove them from the white cities. The Bantu Homeland, sometimes referred to as the Bantustan, were pisions of areas of land that were given to Black People in South Africa and in Namibia (which was then the South West Africa and was administered by the South African government). The Bantu Homelands were autonomous and ethnically homogenous. In South Africa, the Bantustans made-up only 13% of South Africa in terms of territory , they were Venda, Bophuthatswana, Transkei and Ciskei. In Namibia they were East Caprivi, Ovamboland, and Kanagoland.

During apartheid in South Africa most Black people were not allowed into cities. They were required to remain in the homelands that they were allocated. In these Bantustans the living condition were poor, there were poor infrastructure, under resourced schools and poverty. Black people were refused political rights by the apartheid government.

On the other hand only white people could live in the cities. However, a minority of black people were allowed in the cities on condition that they worked there as labours and domestic workers. Even the Blacks who worked in the cities were still allocated their hostels and Ghettos outside the cities.

The apartheid government then realised that both Black and white needed each other. Black people needed employment and white people needed labour in order to increase productivity and boost the economy, which was in crisis due to factors linked with apartheid (this is explained later). This resulted to the influx of black people to the cities in search of jobs. It also caused an increase in labour force to the cities which led to the formation and later rapid growth of labour movements. 

In the 1980s the apartheid government, then led by P.W Botha , relatively began to relax some of the apartheid law. Botha scrapped apartheid legislations like the Pass laws . Although such subtly changes were made, the apartheid system still continued.

The apartheid government then introduced a Tricameral Parliament that consisted of whites, Indians and coloureds. The Tricameral parliament received strong criticism from the Indian and coloured community, as the advisory councils that the coloureds and Indians were allowed gave them very little control. 

What also pressured by external resistance the apartheid government were (i) anti-apartheid movements in in countries like Ireland, (ii) sanctions and economic restrictions against South Africa, where considerable amount of foreign investment was withdrawn from south Africa(iii) different campaigns around the world which demanded the release of Nelson Mandela , and (ii)help from other African countries who fought against apartheid. 

Towards the 1990s the Apartheid government was feeling the pressure both from external and internal resistance. It began the negotiations about the future with Nelson Mandela, who was still in prison by then. It also held meetings with the then exiled African National Congress (ANC) members. These negotiations led to the ANC and the South African communist Party to be unbanned. The Bantustans were also abolished . Democracy in South Africa began.

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