Have You Heard From Johannesburg?
Story Three
Don't Play With Apartheid
[1958 - 1981]
The third story focuses on a particular kind of international politics, one that played a unique and powerful role in the destiny of South Africa: the battle against apartheid in sports. This wasn’t the first time that sports played a part in world politics, but it is the only time that sports has so deeply affected the fate of a nation. The conflict shifts in time and space, over years, in many sports, and many nations. In the end, South Africa is changed forever and so too are other countries, as the sports world, from the Olympics to the rugby fields, declare they won’t play with apartheid. This was the movement’s first victory and it succeeds in culturally isolating the white minority in an arena that was passionately important.