Theses and Dissertations

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White poverty in post-apartheid South Africa: The case of West Bank in East London
(University of Fort Hare, 2015-05-01) Sibanda, Octavin; Bank, L.J.
This dissertation examines the question of poor Whites in the South African context using the case study of a predominantly working-class suburb of West Bank in East London. This study is written within the context of a global and countrywide recession, and within a dominant discourse that portrays White poverty as non- existent and that views White people as predominantly wealthy and 'normal'. Within this discourse, the benefits and privileges extended to White people during the apartheid era are viewed as having transferred property to Whites, whilst dispossessing Blacks. As the White middle-class retains and expands its dominant position in the economy in contemporary South Africa, poor Whites have become overshadowed, invisible and unwanted. This ethnographic exploration focuses on the existence of poor Whites that dwell on the margins of society. The existence of poor Whites is severely stigmatised because it contradicts the perfect images of 'normal' Whites who are not poor. As such, poor Whites suffer from being stereotyped as lazy, drunkards, abnormal, dishonest and trash. This study seeks to understand the social meanings of White poverty and offer a clear interpretation of why it remains invisible and stigmatised.