Apartheid in South Africa and how it ended

Grade 10 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A to D, all summaries in our words, written today. Card A (US State Department, Office of the Historian): White minority rule ended because of several causes: years of internal protest, weakening white commitment, international economic and cultural sanctions, economic struggles and the end of the Cold War. Apartheid ended in steps in the early 1990s, leading to a democratic government in 1994. Card B (pressure from outside): The United Nations led the call for sanctions against South Africa's government. In 1986 the US Congress passed the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act. Card C (steps inside): The ANC and PAC had been outlawed in 1960. In February 1990 President F. W. de Klerk lifted the ban on the ANC and released political prisoners. Nelson Mandela, sentenced to life in 1964, left prison on February 11, 1990. Card D (1993 and 1994): In 1993 the Nobel Peace Prize went to Mandela and de Klerk for their work for the peaceful end of the apartheid regime and for laying the foundations of a new democratic South Africa. The first democratic elections were held on April 27, 1994, and the ANC won about 62 percent. Mandela was inaugurated on May 10, 1994, as the first Black president, with de Klerk as a deputy.

2. 1.

   Card A comes from the US State Department's Office of the Historian. Ari asks what that origin suggests about card A.

   • It is a neutral list, since government historians have no stake in how it is told
   • It shows the US caused the end, since the US government wrote it
   • It is a US government historian's view, so check it against South African sources
   • It was written in the 1980s, so it shows how outsiders saw apartheid at the time
3. 2.

   Card D reports the Nobel Peace Prize of 1993. Esme asks what the announcement shows.

   • That de Klerk freed Mandela in 1993, since the release date is near the prize
   • That apartheid had already ended, since the prize praised a new democracy
   • Which man did more to end apartheid, since the prize named them together in one award
   • The committee's view in 1993 of both men's role, not a measure of how apartheid ended
4. 3.

   Card B lists pressure from outside and card C steps inside. Jun asks which claim the cards support.

   • The 1986 Act released political prisoners, as card C reports in describing the first steps
   • Both outside pressure and inside steps appear; neither alone is shown as the cause
   • Outside pressure ended apartheid, since the 1986 Act came before the 1990 steps
   • De Klerk acted because of the 1986 Act, as card C reports when it describes his steps
5. 4.

   Card A names the end of the Cold War as a cause. Kira asks what evidence would test that cause.

   • The date of the 1994 election, since a later date means the Cold War mattered
   • A source linking the Cold War's end to decisions by the government itself
   • The Nobel Prize of 1993, since it shows the world approved of ending apartheid
   • Mandela's release date, since the Cold War was ending around 1990
6. 5.

   A student says sanctions alone ended apartheid. What do cards A, B and C answer, Luz asks?

   • Card A lists sanctions among five causes, and card C shows steps inside the country
   • The student is right, since two of the five causes on card A concern sanctions
   • The student is right, since the UN led the call and the US passed a law in 1986
   • The student is right in part, since sanctions produced each step that card C reports
7. 6.

   Card C says the ANC and PAC were banned in 1960 and the ban was lifted in 1990. Noah asks what the 30-year span shows.

   • The ban was lifted after Mandela walked free, so his release forced the change
   • 26 years, the length of Mandela's sentence, since the ban and the sentence ran together
   • Opposition groups were banned for 30 years, so lifting the ban reversed policy
   • It shows protest was weak for 30 years, since banned groups could not act
8. 7.

   The Nobel Prize came in 1993 and the first democratic election in 1994. Pia asks what that order shows about the prize.

   • It was awarded for the 1990 release, as card C reports
   • It rewarded the election result, so the vote must have come first
   • It honored work toward a new democracy before the vote that created it
   • It shows the 1994 vote was sure to be peaceful, since the committee said so
9. 8.

   Apartheid began as law in 1948. The first democratic election was in 1994. Ren asks what cards A to D show about how it ended.

   • It ended in one event, the 1994 election, since democracy began that day
   • It ended in steps, from the 1986 Act to the 1994 vote, after 46 years of laws
   • It ended in 1986 with the Act, since the later steps merely followed
   • It ended in 1990 when Mandela was released, so the laws lasted 42 years, from 1948 to 1990
10. 9.

    Mandela was sentenced to life in 1964 and inaugurated as president in 1994. Tala asks what the 30 years show.

    • Thirty years passed between the sentence and the presidency, so he served thirty years in prison
    • Little changed in who held power, since de Klerk stayed on as a deputy
    • A prisoner of 1964 became the first Black president, so who held power changed
    • Equal rights were fully won in 1994, since the vote was held that year
11. 10.

    Card D says the ANC won about 62 percent in 1994. Zee asks what that figure can and cannot show.

    • That the ANC would govern alone, since it held more than half of the votes in 1994
    • That 38 percent opposed ending apartheid, since they voted for other parties
    • 62 percent of the whole population, since voting was open to the whole population in that election
    • A clear majority of the votes cast, not what voters wanted from the new government