Captured by curiosity : the historical development of astronomy in South Africa, from the pre-colonial past to c.1970

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2022.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The historical development of astronomy in South Africa did not occur along linear lines, nor was it sustained by only one group of people or one intellectual tradition. This thesis offers a fresh history of the development of astronomy by synthesising the contribution of various individuals, groups and institutions that contributed to its development from what may be defined as the pre-colonial period up until 1970, when it was first introduced as a subject to study at South African tertiary institutions. It argues that the development of astronomy in South Africa over time, as an intellectual and cultural body of knowledge as well as a scientific and professional discipline, was derived from diverse sources. In doing so, this thesis traces the trajectory of the development of astronomical inquiry by investigating the astronomical practices and cosmological beliefs of various indigenous groups of southern Africa, as well as the individuals, organisations, and institutions of European colonialists from the mid-seventeenth century. This thesis contributes to the existing body of literature by discussing both the precolonial and colonial histories, while also addressing how the role of indigenous peoples and their astronomical activities is often excluded from the broader narrative and that it belongs in our broader understanding of the history of astronomical thinking.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die historiese ontwikkeling van sterrekunde in Suid-Afrika het nie op ‘n lineêre wyse plaasgevind nie, en dit is ook nie deur slegs een groep mense of een intellektuele tradisie onderhou nie. Hierdie tesis bied ‘n nuwe geskiedenis aan wat van die ontwikkeling van sterrekunde deur die bydrae van verskillende individue, groepe en instellings wat bygedra het tot die ontwikkeling daarvan, te sintetiseer vanaf die voorkoloniale tydperk tot 1970, wanneer dit eers as ‘n onderwerp bekendgestel in Suid-Afrikaanse tersiêre instellings te studeer. Hierdie tesis voer aan dat die ontwikkeling van sterrekunde in Suid-Afrika oor tyd, as ‘n intellektuele en kulturele kennis, sowel as ‘n wetenskaplike en professionele dissipline, uit verskillende bronne verkry is. Hierdie tesis volg die trajek van die ontwikkeling van astronomiese ondersoek deur die astronomiese praktyke en kosmologiese oortuigings van verskillende inheemse groepe in Suider-Afrika, sowel as die individue, organisasies en instellings van Europese kolonialiste uit die middel van die sewentiende eeu te ondersoek. Hierdie tesis bydra tot die bestaande literatuur deur beide die voorkoloniale en koloniale geskiedenis te bespreek, en bespreek ook hoe die rol van inheemse mense en hul astronomiese aktiwiteite dikwels uitgesluit word van die breër verhaal en dat dit hoort in ons breër begrip van die geskiedenis van astronomiese denke.Master

The boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement: activism across borders for Palestinian justice

On 7 July 2005, a global call for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) was declared to people around the world to enact boycott initiatives and pressure their respective governments to sanction Israel until it complies with international law and respects universal principles of human rights. The call was endorsed by over 170 Palestinian associations, trade unions, non-governmental organizations, charities, and other Palestinian groups. The call mentioned how broad BDS campaigns were utilized in the South African struggle against apartheid, and how these efforts served as an inspiration to those seeking justice for Palestinians. The call stated that boycott measures should be carried out until three demands are met – that Israel end the occupation of Arab lands, end discrimination against Palestinian citizens in Israel, and respect the Palestinian right of return. This study explores the causes for the BDS movement, its organizational dynamics, and the potential outcomes the movement intends to gain through bordercrossing solidarity groups and networks. Research questions guiding this investigation have been: What causal conditions have led to the emergence of the movement? How is the movement similar and/or dissimilar to other forms of challenging Israel? How is the BDS movement organized across borders, and how are local campaigns within the movement operationalized? This thesis is comprised of three sections that include a historical background, case study chapters on BDS campaigns, and a final section that analyzes the movement’s structure and processes, its connection to global justice activism, and challenges and limitations of the movement. Thus, this thesis critically investigates the BDS movement through its operationalization across borders and argues that due to its scope, organizational structure, and collective action frames, the transnational movement represents a new and different approach to challenging Israel in the Palestinian struggle for justice

Boycotts and Sanctions against South Africa: An International History, 1946-1970

This dissertation analyzes the role of various kinds of boycotts and sanctions in the strategies and tactics of those active in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. What was unprecedented about the efforts of members of the global anti-apartheid movement was that they experimented with so many ways of severing so many forms of interaction with South Africa, and that boycotts ultimately came to be seen as such a central element of their struggle. But it was not inevitable that international boycotts would become indelibly associated with the struggle against apartheid. Calling for boycotts and sanctions was a political choice. In the years before 1959, most leading opponents of apartheid both inside and outside South Africa showed little interest in the idea of international boycotts of South Africa. This dissertation identifies the conjuncture of circumstances that caused this to change, and explains the subsequent shifts in the kinds of boycotts that opponents of apartheid prioritized. It shows that the various advocates of boycotts and sanctions expected them to contribute to ending apartheid by a range of different mechanisms, from bringing about an evolutionary change in white attitudes through promoting the desegregation of sport, to weakening the state’s ability to resist the efforts of the liberation movements to seize power through guerrilla warfare. But though the purpose of anti-apartheid boycotts continued to be contested, boycott had, by 1970, become established as the defining principle of the self-identified anti-apartheid movement

The BG News May 1, 2006

The BGSU campus student newspaper May 1, 2006. Volume 96 - Issue 147https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/bg-news/8604/thumbnail.jp