The impact of the South African bill of rights on discrimination and the search for equality

Abstract

This dissertation assesses the impact of the Bill of Rights on discrimination and xenophobia and the search for equality, with particular reference to the North West Province. It grapples with the social implications of discrimination against foreigners in a changing social order. In so doing, the dissertation examines a number of complex issues or factors that contribute to these two forms of discrimination, including: one's own race, the experiences of foreigners in the NWP in the context of increasing xenophobia and racial discrimination and post apartheid discourses about discrimination. The major findings of this dissertation stem from the responses obtained from administered questionnaires, interviews and focussed informal and formal group discussions with affected individuals either as perpetrators or victims. These findings are supplemented and informed by extensive library research, which included the study of reported cases and texts on the two forms of discrimination.