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From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour

This qualitative case study examines conceptualizations of post-apartheid democratic citizenship. Drawing on in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted in July 2009 with twelve voting age women of colour in the small town of Cradock in the Eastern Cape, it demonstrates how traditional theorizati...

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Main Author: Elder, Emily
Other Authors: Steyn, Melissa
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of Sociology 2014
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access_status_str Open Access
author Elder, Emily
author2 Steyn, Melissa
author_browse Elder, Emily
Steyn, Melissa
author_facet Steyn, Melissa
Elder, Emily
author_sort Elder, Emily
collection Thesis
description This qualitative case study examines conceptualizations of post-apartheid democratic citizenship. Drawing on in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted in July 2009 with twelve voting age women of colour in the small town of Cradock in the Eastern Cape, it demonstrates how traditional theorizations are inadequate for understanding the substantive citizenship some small town women desire, live, and demand. Though the research design began with a traditional definition that citizenship rests on the knowledge of and ability to engage with claiming rights findings demonstrated the failings, and challenged the sufficiency, of this approach. Listening closely to the voices of the women interviewed revealed the importance of emotion. Further, the ways that emotion emerged from these interviews illuminate an under-examined aspect of substantive citizenship: its affective dimensions. The affective issues that emerged were those of perceived elite indifference to the people, conflicted feelings about the post-apartheid state, racialized and gendered hatred and hate speech, and the women's hopes for an ideal public life based on love and respect. Working from a race-conscious, post-colonial, feminist lens, I argue that while a rights-based approach to citizenship is necessary, it cannot fully encompass the complexities of post-apartheid substantive citizenship, especially for small-town women of colour. Considering affect leads to a more meaningful theory of citizenship, one that must rest on a loving, political ethic.
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institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:33:21.255Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2014
publishDateRange 2014
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publisher Department of Sociology
publisherStr Department of Sociology
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source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/3870 From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour Elder, Emily Steyn, Melissa Diversity Studies This qualitative case study examines conceptualizations of post-apartheid democratic citizenship. Drawing on in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted in July 2009 with twelve voting age women of colour in the small town of Cradock in the Eastern Cape, it demonstrates how traditional theorizations are inadequate for understanding the substantive citizenship some small town women desire, live, and demand. Though the research design began with a traditional definition that citizenship rests on the knowledge of and ability to engage with claiming rights findings demonstrated the failings, and challenged the sufficiency, of this approach. Listening closely to the voices of the women interviewed revealed the importance of emotion. Further, the ways that emotion emerged from these interviews illuminate an under-examined aspect of substantive citizenship: its affective dimensions. The affective issues that emerged were those of perceived elite indifference to the people, conflicted feelings about the post-apartheid state, racialized and gendered hatred and hate speech, and the women's hopes for an ideal public life based on love and respect. Working from a race-conscious, post-colonial, feminist lens, I argue that while a rights-based approach to citizenship is necessary, it cannot fully encompass the complexities of post-apartheid substantive citizenship, especially for small-town women of colour. Considering affect leads to a more meaningful theory of citizenship, one that must rest on a loving, political ethic. 2014-07-30T04:04:22Z 2014-07-30T04:04:22Z 2010 Master Thesis Masters MA http://hdl.handle.net/11427/3870 eng application/pdf Department of Sociology Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Diversity Studies
Elder, Emily
From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
thesis_degree_str Master's
title From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
title_full From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
title_fullStr From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
title_full_unstemmed From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
title_short From Cradock, With Love: Affective Substantive Post -Apartheid Citizenship for Women of Colour
title_sort from cradock with love affective substantive post apartheid citizenship for women of colour
topic Diversity Studies
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/3870
work_keys_str_mv AT elderemily fromcradockwithloveaffectivesubstantivepostapartheidcitizenshipforwomenofcolour