Where does South Africa go? Since the dawn of democracy in 1994, the country has been ruled by the former liberation movement, the African National Congress (ANC). Formerly a beacon of hope for most South Africans, the perception of the party has changed. Striking miners, corruption scandals, alleged restrictions on the freedom of the media and cadre employment pose challenges to the rainbow nation and its democracy. But there is also a lot of hope around the Cape: the liberation of South Africa from apartheid gave way to a new generation of young South Africans – the emerging black middle class. Well-educated and highly motivated to work and achieve, this group of people benefits from the lifted restrictions and new opportunities in post-apartheid South Africa. But will it also contribute to the consolidation and further development of democracy in the country? Research in western nations suggests that the middle class is fostering the development of democracy. But does this relation also hold for the emerging black middle class in South Africa? This study tries to shed some light on this extremely relevant and though neglected issue. It draws a picture of the emerging black middle class’ attitudes towards democracy and assesses how this group relates to democracy.

Bachelor Thesis from the year 2013 in the subject Politics - Region: Africa, grade: 1,3, Free University of Berlin, language: English, abstract: 19 years after the promising democratic change in South Africa, the countries challenges and disparities remain ubiquitous. The huge majority of black South Africans still lives in poverty, inequality has grown since the end of apartheid, service delivery is a permanent problem and democratic institutions are at least partly weak (Holden 2012: 95). However, the new South Africa is not only signified by the aggravation of disparities. Over the last years, the emergence of a black middle class became steadily more tangible and is today a mostly undisputed phenomenon (Schrire 2005: 271; Southall 2004: 539; Everatt 2011: 79). Some research has been conducted especially to determine definition criteria and the size of a black middle class (Rivero et al. 2003; Southall 2004; Visagie, Posel 2011; Phadi, Ceruti 2011). The total middle class in South Africa included 29% black South Africans in 1994, while until 2011, their share had grown to 49.8% of the total middle class (Holden 2012: 226-227). In absolute numbers, the black middle class made up five million people in 2011 (Visagie, Posel 2011: 8, 17) while South Africa had a total black population of around 41 million people (Statistics SA 2011). Hence, approximately 8.2% of the black population group belongs to the black middle class. Although there is research discussing the size of the black middle class in South Africa, neither exists a comprehensive knowledge about the black middle class' attitudes towards democracy nor is there a profound analysis to which extent the black middle class may contribute to democracy (Everatt 2011: 79-80; Southall 2004: 528). In order to narrow these obvious research gaps, this study asks the following research questions: 1) How does the emerging black middle class in South Africa understand democracy? And 2) How can the relation between the emerging black middle class and democracy be assessed or rather does the emerging black middle class in South Africa contribute to the strengthening of democracy in the country? [...]

Provides the most comprehensive account since the early 1960s of South Africa's "black middle class". 2016 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title The "rise of the black middle class" is one of the most visible aspects of post-apartheid society in South Africa. Yet while it has been a major actor in the country's democratic reshaping, analysis of its role has been all but lacking. Rather, the image presented by the media has been of "black diamonds", consumers of the products of advanced industrial economies, and of corrupt "tenderpreneurs" who use their political connections to obtain contracts. This book seeks to complicate that picture with a much-needed analysis that recounts its historical development in colonial society prior to 1994, before examining the size, shape andstructure of the new black middle class in contemporary South Africa and its relation to its counterparts in the Global South. Roger Southall is Professor Emeritus in Sociology, University of the Witwatersrand. Southern Africa (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Swaziland): Jacana

Twenty years after the end of apartheid, a new generation is building a multiracial democracy in South Africa but remains mired in economic inequality and political conflict. The death of Nelson Mandela in 2013 arrived just short of the twentieth anniversary of South Africa’s first free election, reminding the world of the promise he represented as the nation’s first Black president. Despite significant progress since the early days of this new democracy, frustration is growing as inequalities that once divided the races now grow within them as well. In After Freedom, award-winning sociologist Katherine S. Newman and South African expert Ariane De Lannoy bring alive the voices of the “freedom generation,” who came of age after the end of apartheid. Through the stories of seven ordinary individuals who will inherit the richest, and yet most unequal, country in Africa, Newman and De Lannoy explore how young South Africans, whether Black, White, mixed race, or immigrant, confront the lingering consequences of racial oppression. These intimate portraits illuminate the erosion of old loyalties, the eruption of class divides, and the heated debate over policies designed to redress the evils of apartheid. Even so, the freedom generation remains committed to a united South Africa and is struggling to find its way toward that vision.

Where does South Africa go? Since the dawn of democracy in 1994, the country has been ruled by the former liberation movement, the African National Congress (ANC). Formerly a beacon of hope for most South Africans, the perception of the party has changed. Striking miners, corruption scandals, alleged restrictions on the freedom of the media and cadre employment pose challenges to the rainbow nation and its democracy. But there is also a lot of hope around the Cape: the liberation of South Africa from apartheid gave way to a new generation of young South Africans – the emerging black middle class. Well-educated and highly motivated to work and achieve, this group of people benefits from the lifted restrictions and new opportunities in post-apartheid South Africa. But will it also contribute to the consolidation and further development of democracy in the country? Research in western nations suggests that the middle class is fostering the development of democracy. But does this relation also hold for the emerging black middle class in South Africa? This study tries to shed some light on this extremely relevant and though neglected issue. It draws a picture of the emerging black middle class’ attitudes towards democracy and assesses how this group relates to democracy.

Despite South Africa's successful transition to democracy and lauded constitution, political freedom for the majority of South Africans remains elusive. The poor and unemployed majority are poorly represented and lack power and thus freedom. Under these conditions, the freedom of the privileged minority is also seriously impaired due to the costs of maintaining their relative security and well-being. Lawrence Hamilton is an internationally-known political theorist, who has spent ten years teaching in South African universities. In this unique book he brings ideas - political and philosophical - to the fore to understand a contemporary political conundrum. He outlines the persistent, unresolved problems characterizing contemporary South Africa: poverty and quality of life statistics that are appalling for a middle-income country, levels of inequality that make South Africa one of the most unequal places in the world, skewed economic and political representation that reproduces elites rather than generating opportunities for all and an electoral system that implements the idea of proportional representation so literally that it undermines meaningful representation. Are South Africans Free? aims not only to explain the current state of South Africa but to provide positive new directions and suggestions for institutional change. Hamilton argues that freedom as power in South Africa does not depend on good will, charity or duty, and it goes beyond the complete realization of the political and civil liberties currently safeguarded in its constitution. Such change will depend on courageous leadership, active citizenship, new forms of representation and a macroeconomic policy that offers radical redistribution of actual and potential wealth.

A compelling account of South Africa’s post-Apartheid democracy At a time when many democracies are under strain around the world, Until We Have Won Our Liberty shines new light on the signal achievements of one of the contemporary era’s most closely watched transitions away from minority rule. South Africa’s democratic development has been messy, fiercely contested, and sometimes violent. But as Evan Lieberman argues, it has also offered a voice to the voiceless, unprecedented levels of government accountability, and tangible improvements in quality of life. Lieberman opens with a first-hand account of the hard-fought 2019 national election, and how it played out in Mogale City, a post-Apartheid municipality created from Black African townships and White Afrikaner suburbs. From this launching point, he examines the complexities of South Africa’s multiracial society and the unprecedented democratic experiment that began with the election of Nelson Mandela in 1994. While acknowledging the enormous challenges many South Africans continue to face—including unemployment, inequality, and discrimination—Lieberman draws on the country’s history and the experience of comparable countries to demonstrate that elected Black-led governments have, without resorting to political extremism, improved the lives of millions. In the context of open and competitive politics, citizens have gained access to housing, basic services, and dignified treatment to a greater extent than during any prior period. Countering much of the conventional wisdom about contemporary South Africa, Until We Have Won Our Liberty offers hope for the enduring impact of democratic ideals.