South Africa and the Long History of Globalization (Hardcover)

Kevin Cox's book looks at South Africa in the context of the history of capitalist globalization, moving from the late nineteenth century forward to post-apartheid times. Throughout, Cox focuses on how the homogenizing processes of capitalist globalization (which he argues stretch back far deeper in time than many believe) are always constrained by place and the social conditions therein. South Africa, while fully shaped by a European-dominated capitalist system, evolved in unique ways due its demi-colonial status: its reliance on mining and low wage migrant labour, and, of course, the brutal racist system that eventually evolved into apartheid in the 1940s. Since the end of apartheid, it has attempted to position itself as the key player in the larger African economy, and it still suffers from the legacy of intense racial and economic inequality. In addition, AIDS has become a major - and debilitating - feature of the social landscape. In these ways, place defines the nation, preventing it from becoming a homogenized component of an increasing global capitalist system.