In 1950, the South African government passed the Group Areas Act. Under this act, it became legal to keep racial groups completely separate. While many white families stayed in their homes, the government forced all blacks and coloured people out of the city centers.

District Six is a community in Cape Town where the government forcibly removed more than 60,000 people.

In 1966, the National Party government declared District Six a whites-only area, even though it was a neighborhood with a diverse population.

Forceful removals happened all across South Africa - uprooting countless people from their homes and relocating them to communities, called townships.

From the start, homes in townships were poorly built, many lacking basic services like running water and electricity. The populations in some of these townships ran in the tens of thousands. Alexandra, or Alex, is one example of the crowded living conditions non-whites have dealt with for decades.

In Alex, surrounding me were countless, tiny one-room shacks made from large sheets of tin. I noticed rocks and bricks stacked atop the tin roofs. Someone told me this keeps roofs from blowing away during storms. I know that slums exist, but this was the first time I met people who live in these conditions.

Even though conditions are improving here, it’s taking a very long time to lift the townships out of Apartheid’s effects.

I often hear about poverty in the news, but I forget how much we all have in common. Around the world people want homes, job, an education, food, and hope for a better future. Everyone I met welcomed me with a smile, which reminded me that we are all the same.

Reflecting on History: The Soweto Uprising.

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