The underpinnings of violent protest in South Africa: Origins and effects

Humanity Faculty

Popular protest has become a regular feature of post-1994 South Africa, most notably since 2004 with what has been interpreted as an upsurge in local and community protest. Through both international comparison and examination of local dynamics and context, this PRP intends to extend our understanding of the underpinnings of protest in South Africa and the variety of factors that generate protest action.

In response to South African and global trends, MISTRA’s Protest PRP will seek to answer the following overarching research questions, focused on the dynamics and underpinnings of protest in post-1994 South Africa, but drawing on comparative international experience:

What causal factors underpin the presence and prevalence of various forms of protest in contemporary South Africa?
What led to the July 2021 uprising and how does it relate to broader protest trends and dynamics in South Africa?
What causal factors underpin protest in other global contexts, and how might these explanations provide a useful comparison for understanding the manifestation and trajectory of protest in South Africa?
Is there a way of predicting where, when and how peaceful protests will turn violent?

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