what is an apartheid

Apartheid was a system of institutionalized racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterized by an authoritarian political culture based on baasskap, which ensured that South Africa was dominated politically, socially, and economically through minoritarianism by the nations dominant minority white population. The system was founded on the idea of separating people based on racial or ethnic criteria, and it was exercised over geographical areas, putting one part of the population in an area separated from the others, or forbidding a group to access some areas solely based on their belonging to a race or ethnicity. Apartheid was conceptualized in South Africa in the 20th century, based on racial segregation, and aimed to separate the minoritarian white population from the Black population, by designating areas prohibited to Black people. The different racial groups were physically separated according to their location, public facilities, and social life. Apartheid made laws forced the different racial groups to live separately and develop separately, and grossly unequally too. The economic legacy and social effects of apartheid continue to the present day, particularly inequality. Apartheid is a violation of public international law, a grave violation of internationally protected human rights, and a crime against humanity under international criminal law.