Black spaces: the Group Areas Act, the material boundaries of life and grievability

Abstract

My aim in this thesis is to unpack the ways in which the Group Areas Act of 1950 and apartheid spatial planning more broadly was not only concerned with who had access to socio-economic rights but also with deciding which lives were valuable and thus grievable. The spatial expression of (post)apartheid South African life is undoubtedly racialised, gendered and classed.

The central theme of this research project is to critically engage apartheid geography through the lens of Judith Butler’s notion of “grievability” as put forward in 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘝𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘞𝘢𝘳: 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦? as well as Giorgio Agamben’s “bare life” as put forward in 𝘏𝘰𝘮𝘰 𝘚𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘳: 𝘚𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 to explore an understanding of spatial injustice that is informed by the (re)production of exclusionary conceptions of a normative human those falling outside of which cannot be mourned publicly. One of the main arguments in this project is that spatial justice extends beyond the geographic arrangements of the material realm into the recognition and restoration of humanity and dignity.

This thesis examines how social markers impact the ways in which certain people can navigate space and the results of not belonging in certain spaces. As a research project grounded in critical race theory, feminist theory, queer theory, class analysis and disability rights, this thesis pushes me to think about space and how we inhabit space as marginalised people in (post)apartheid South Africa. I turn to black feminist geographic thought for a grounded exploration of pathways to achieving spatial justice and conducting a critical race spatial analysis of the endurance of apartheid geography. ___________________________________________________________________

𝑨𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒌𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒔 My doel in hierdie tesis is om maniere te ontleed waarop die Groepsgebiedewet van 1950 en apartheid se ruimtelike beplanning in die breë sin nie net gemoeid was met wie toegang tot sosio-ekonomiese regte gehad het nie, maar ook met die besluit oor watter lewens waardevol was, wat dus betreurenswaardig is. Die ruimtelike uitdrukking van (post)apartheid se Suid-Afrikaanse lewe is ongetwyfeld volgens ras, geslag en klas verdeeld.

Die sentrale tema van hierdie navorsingsprojek is om apartheid se geografie krities te benader deur die lens van Judith Butler se idee van “grievability” (betreurenswaardigheid), soos voorgehou in 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘝𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘞𝘢𝘳: 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦? sowel as Giorgio Agamben se “bare life” soos voorgehou in 𝘏𝘰𝘮𝘰 𝘚𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘳: 𝘚𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦, om ʼn begrip van ruimtelike ongeregtigheid te ondersoek wat ingelig word deur die (re)produksie van uitsluitingsbegrippe van ʼn normatiewe mens, diegene wat buite dit val of uitgesluit word, kan nie in die openbaar betreur word nie. Een van die hoofargumente in hierdie projek is dat ruimtelike geregtigheid verder strek as die geografiese rangskikkings van die materiële wêreld en sluit die erkenning en herstel van menslikheid en waardigheid in.

Hierdie tesis ondersoek hoe sosiale merkers ʼn impak het op die maniere waarop sekere mense ruimte kan navigeer en die gevolge daarvan om nie in sekere ruimtes te behoort nie. As ʼn navorsingsprojek wat gegrond is op kritiese rasseteorie, feministiese teorie, queer-teorie, klasanalise en gestremdheidsregte, dwing hierdie tesis my om te dink oor ruimte en hoe ons ruimte as gemarginaliseerde mense in (post)apartheid Suid-Afrika bewoon. Ek wend my tot swart feministiese geografiese denke vir ʼn gegronde verkenning van maniere om ruimtelike geregtigheid te behaal en ʼn kritiese ras-ruimtelike ontleding van die voortbestaan van apartheid se geografie uit te voer. ___________________________________________________________________