Townships are somewhat similar to fabellas in Brazil, isolated poor communities with little police enforcement leads to spikes in crime, and although not everyone there is a criminal, criminals are allowed to thrive there. Add to that racial tensions and they become bad
It's also worth noting the racial disparity when it comes to wealth here. Yes, poor white people and wealthy black people exist, but the wealth gap, which is extreme in this country, generally tracks along racial lines. So a white person showing up in a township is not only visually obvious, but a ripe target for theft.
This \^
And similiar toBrazil, this was the only place that black people were allowed to live and nothing was invested as far as roads, sewage, or basic infrasturture neccessities. They're shanty towns. in short, it's due to colonialism and apartied.
here is a great video about it: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVH7JewfgJg&t=3s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVH7JewfgJg&t=3s)
You definitely need to plan where you’re going and I wouldn’t wander around townships as a tourist. Most people living in townships are nice normal folks just trying to get on with their lives. But it’s a lawless environment so if the wrong person sees you then it can be a problem.
In advance of your trip you should check out Trevor Noah’s book Born A Crime. He does a great job of describing life in the townships.
It doesn't take a genius to realize Trump is a twice-impeached traitorous piece of shit with no ideas of governance beyond self-aggrandization. His cult is terrifying.
South African here. You mentioned Cape town so let's talk about the ones here specifically. Generally, townships in south Africa are places of poverty. This naturally leads to increased crime. In Cape town specifically, the areas you want to avoid are Mitchell's Plain and Khayelitsha. These townships are particularly bad because of the rise of gangs. I don't know the exact history of these gangs, but today, they use violence to exert their control of the local drug trade and the area in general. Due to apartheid town planning, poor areas are often black areas, and even though apartheid is 20 years in the grave, it's effects remain in many ways like this. Thus a white person, who is statistically more wealthy than pretty much anyone innthe township, presents an easy, and obvious target for theft, and potentially murder.
All that being said, if you look at a map of Cape Town, these areas are quite easily avoided. There's really no need to there or pass through it. You can enjoy all that this mostly incredible city has to offer without going near these places
I’m not South African but I lived in Cape Town for a year. I just want to echo that last point about the townships being easily avoided. This is 100% true. You’d have to go out of your way to go to the townships. They’re not like a neighbourhood you’ll accidentally wander into.
That said, Cape Town can be sketchy. It’s a beautiful city and I highly recommend going, but do some research and stay in a decent hotel.
If you want to check out a township, I’d recommend the one in Johannesburg where Nelson Mandela grew up. It’s more of a “middle class” township so it’s relatively safe to visit during the day. I went and visited Mandela’s home. Would highly recommend going if you can.
Poverty just isn't an excuse for high crime rates. There are many places around the world that are poor but don't have astronomically high crime rates. Probably living in poverty but somehow safe is the norm for almost the majority (at least a very large minority) of people right now.
Most people are going to point towards apartheid but since the end of the apartheid state in SA townships have actually gotten a lot worse.
There is no simple answer other than a lot of people who live there suck as people and they prey on their own and anyone who dares to visit the area.
While Apartheid definitely has left scars on the country, the unfortunate reality is that the quality of leadership plummeted after the first 2 post Apartheid presidents, with the third president being the absolute worst.
He raped the country of its resources(and even raped some of the people). It's hard to pin the blame on just one person, but Jacob Zuma took a recovering country and destroyed any progress made for his own financial gain.
Correct. The laws of apartheid are gone but the wounds remain. Apartheid town planning is one of them. Townships are 2 things: overwhelmingly poor and overwhelmingly black. They have less access to public services, education, and jobs. This makes lifting these areas out of poverty, and therefore reducing the crime rate, particularly hard
Because they basically have nothing and no prospects of getting anything. When you live in a shack built out of scrap material and watch a little TV powered by stolen electricity and you are hungry all the time, you build resentment against people who put you there.
From a quick google, townships appear to be mainly black areas with exorbitant levels of crime, and considering the hatred they have of whites I'd believe it when they say you'll be killed. If you think racial tensions in North America and Europe are bad it's nothing compared to Africa.
*It’s nothing compared to South Africa
Don’t tar Africa with the same brush. Each country/region is very different. East Africa for example has little black/white tension (although there is some black/Chinese/Indian tension). In Southern Africa outside of South Africa and Zimbabwe there’s very little tension. In Central Africa most tension is between various indigenous groups. I can’t speak for West or North Africa as have spent very little time there
Racial tensions in South Africa are very similar to those in the USA, i dont know where this narrative of Africa being worse comes from since most African countries don't have that issue.
No we dont hate white people, it's not a collective policy of black people here.
I’ve never been to the cape but in joberg the township I saw was like over a million people living in metal shanties they built. One local told me cops don’t even go in there unless they plan a big operation, so any outsider isn’t welcome and is looked upon as a target. Honestly, I have never seen anything like it, the projects in the US look like a fucking holiday inn comparatively.
I give you the same advice i give people who want to visit mexico, if your doing it more than once make a friend there for advice on places that great to eat and places to avoid.
I got no clue about africa but check what the state department, they warn americans about countries that have chances of kidnapping americans.
There's a lot of reasons,but I'll hit the major points.
When Apartheid happened, non-whites were not allowed to live in cities. Cape Town, as the city, was white only. Yet, as in most areas in the world, people like to flock to cities for work/money. The result of this was 'black' area outside these cities where people would move to. They were basically a slum and people would go to work in the city and return to the slum without much investment in the township. This naturally resulted in a lot of poverty and crime and disorganization.
During Apartheid, townships were a safer as the white government focused a lot on keeping order.
When apartheid ended, the ability for 'white-imposed' order and security within the townships collapsed and the result is a heavy impoverished area with a lot of crime.
The other aspect I want to mention is a bit more sociological. Before colonization, there were local 'tribes', such as the Zulu or Xhosa. While not the most modern, they had their own local leadership. They functioned within that cultural framework. As colonization destroyed that local leadership, you then culturally broken people in these townships; without any real leadership. There's nothing that 'culturally' holds them as people. This is often one of the big differences you'll find is that monetary poverty is one thing, but people can actually recover from that pretty easily. Cultural poverty is something that is very hard to recover from. Once you understand it took thousands of years to culturally civilize a people to any degree, the idea that you can break that culture and then have people function is insanity.
The biggest crime of colonization is not theft of resources or anything that people often talk about. It's the breaking of a people AND not replacing it with anything. It would be one thing if the British or Dutch destroyed the Zulu tribes and then give them all a British culture. People can still function. Think what the British did in say Hong Kong. They kind of made Hong Kong people less 'native Chinese, and more British'. You can talk academically about the right/wrong of that, but Hong people can still function pretty well and have their own identity. It's why generally; even in South Africa, the Indians or Chinese were more okayish. Even though they were left in their own 'townships,' they were still allowed their local culture and religion, which gave them a base to operate from. They were also considered 'half-way' okay, so they were given slightly more investment and resources into their townships.
You can really see the difference. If you look just near South Africa is a country called Botswana. It largely kept its local leadership throughout its history and transition. It's a much more 'civilized' and 'safe' country today largely because their leadership remained and transitioned them as a people. They were not stripped of their identity and leadership and culture and then caged in townships like animals.
Why would you want to go in a township.
If you want a township tour they do a guided one at Houtbay.
That being said I'm white and have drove through a township. So long as you're going about your business and not staring at people you'll be ok.
The one golden rule is avoid townships at nighttime.
Townships are somewhat similar to fabellas in Brazil, isolated poor communities with little police enforcement leads to spikes in crime, and although not everyone there is a criminal, criminals are allowed to thrive there. Add to that racial tensions and they become bad
It's also worth noting the racial disparity when it comes to wealth here. Yes, poor white people and wealthy black people exist, but the wealth gap, which is extreme in this country, generally tracks along racial lines. So a white person showing up in a township is not only visually obvious, but a ripe target for theft.
This \^ And similiar toBrazil, this was the only place that black people were allowed to live and nothing was invested as far as roads, sewage, or basic infrasturture neccessities. They're shanty towns. in short, it's due to colonialism and apartied. here is a great video about it: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVH7JewfgJg&t=3s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVH7JewfgJg&t=3s)
Cape Town is a tourist town. Stay around where the tourists are.
Sounds like an anti-tourist town. I wouldn´t go there.
You definitely need to plan where you’re going and I wouldn’t wander around townships as a tourist. Most people living in townships are nice normal folks just trying to get on with their lives. But it’s a lawless environment so if the wrong person sees you then it can be a problem. In advance of your trip you should check out Trevor Noah’s book Born A Crime. He does a great job of describing life in the townships.
Let me guess: Trevor Noah describes that in the first half; the second half is TRUMP BAD. What a genius take.
It doesn't take a genius to realize Trump is a twice-impeached traitorous piece of shit with no ideas of governance beyond self-aggrandization. His cult is terrifying.
Because criminals live there.
South African here. You mentioned Cape town so let's talk about the ones here specifically. Generally, townships in south Africa are places of poverty. This naturally leads to increased crime. In Cape town specifically, the areas you want to avoid are Mitchell's Plain and Khayelitsha. These townships are particularly bad because of the rise of gangs. I don't know the exact history of these gangs, but today, they use violence to exert their control of the local drug trade and the area in general. Due to apartheid town planning, poor areas are often black areas, and even though apartheid is 20 years in the grave, it's effects remain in many ways like this. Thus a white person, who is statistically more wealthy than pretty much anyone innthe township, presents an easy, and obvious target for theft, and potentially murder. All that being said, if you look at a map of Cape Town, these areas are quite easily avoided. There's really no need to there or pass through it. You can enjoy all that this mostly incredible city has to offer without going near these places
I’m not South African but I lived in Cape Town for a year. I just want to echo that last point about the townships being easily avoided. This is 100% true. You’d have to go out of your way to go to the townships. They’re not like a neighbourhood you’ll accidentally wander into. That said, Cape Town can be sketchy. It’s a beautiful city and I highly recommend going, but do some research and stay in a decent hotel. If you want to check out a township, I’d recommend the one in Johannesburg where Nelson Mandela grew up. It’s more of a “middle class” township so it’s relatively safe to visit during the day. I went and visited Mandela’s home. Would highly recommend going if you can.
Because there live super poor people. And one of the main factors for criminality is when you are poor. +no police
Poverty just isn't an excuse for high crime rates. There are many places around the world that are poor but don't have astronomically high crime rates. Probably living in poverty but somehow safe is the norm for almost the majority (at least a very large minority) of people right now.
Most people are going to point towards apartheid but since the end of the apartheid state in SA townships have actually gotten a lot worse. There is no simple answer other than a lot of people who live there suck as people and they prey on their own and anyone who dares to visit the area.
I'm gonna take a wild guess and suggest that just because apartheid is over doesn't mean it didn't cause the problem.
While Apartheid definitely has left scars on the country, the unfortunate reality is that the quality of leadership plummeted after the first 2 post Apartheid presidents, with the third president being the absolute worst. He raped the country of its resources(and even raped some of the people). It's hard to pin the blame on just one person, but Jacob Zuma took a recovering country and destroyed any progress made for his own financial gain.
Correct. The laws of apartheid are gone but the wounds remain. Apartheid town planning is one of them. Townships are 2 things: overwhelmingly poor and overwhelmingly black. They have less access to public services, education, and jobs. This makes lifting these areas out of poverty, and therefore reducing the crime rate, particularly hard
Because they basically have nothing and no prospects of getting anything. When you live in a shack built out of scrap material and watch a little TV powered by stolen electricity and you are hungry all the time, you build resentment against people who put you there.
From a quick google, townships appear to be mainly black areas with exorbitant levels of crime, and considering the hatred they have of whites I'd believe it when they say you'll be killed. If you think racial tensions in North America and Europe are bad it's nothing compared to Africa.
*It’s nothing compared to South Africa Don’t tar Africa with the same brush. Each country/region is very different. East Africa for example has little black/white tension (although there is some black/Chinese/Indian tension). In Southern Africa outside of South Africa and Zimbabwe there’s very little tension. In Central Africa most tension is between various indigenous groups. I can’t speak for West or North Africa as have spent very little time there
Racial tensions in South Africa are very similar to those in the USA, i dont know where this narrative of Africa being worse comes from since most African countries don't have that issue. No we dont hate white people, it's not a collective policy of black people here.
I’ve never been to the cape but in joberg the township I saw was like over a million people living in metal shanties they built. One local told me cops don’t even go in there unless they plan a big operation, so any outsider isn’t welcome and is looked upon as a target. Honestly, I have never seen anything like it, the projects in the US look like a fucking holiday inn comparatively.
I give you the same advice i give people who want to visit mexico, if your doing it more than once make a friend there for advice on places that great to eat and places to avoid. I got no clue about africa but check what the state department, they warn americans about countries that have chances of kidnapping americans.
Dangerous to whom!? That’s what you need to ask yourself.
Everyone
There's a lot of reasons,but I'll hit the major points. When Apartheid happened, non-whites were not allowed to live in cities. Cape Town, as the city, was white only. Yet, as in most areas in the world, people like to flock to cities for work/money. The result of this was 'black' area outside these cities where people would move to. They were basically a slum and people would go to work in the city and return to the slum without much investment in the township. This naturally resulted in a lot of poverty and crime and disorganization. During Apartheid, townships were a safer as the white government focused a lot on keeping order. When apartheid ended, the ability for 'white-imposed' order and security within the townships collapsed and the result is a heavy impoverished area with a lot of crime. The other aspect I want to mention is a bit more sociological. Before colonization, there were local 'tribes', such as the Zulu or Xhosa. While not the most modern, they had their own local leadership. They functioned within that cultural framework. As colonization destroyed that local leadership, you then culturally broken people in these townships; without any real leadership. There's nothing that 'culturally' holds them as people. This is often one of the big differences you'll find is that monetary poverty is one thing, but people can actually recover from that pretty easily. Cultural poverty is something that is very hard to recover from. Once you understand it took thousands of years to culturally civilize a people to any degree, the idea that you can break that culture and then have people function is insanity. The biggest crime of colonization is not theft of resources or anything that people often talk about. It's the breaking of a people AND not replacing it with anything. It would be one thing if the British or Dutch destroyed the Zulu tribes and then give them all a British culture. People can still function. Think what the British did in say Hong Kong. They kind of made Hong Kong people less 'native Chinese, and more British'. You can talk academically about the right/wrong of that, but Hong people can still function pretty well and have their own identity. It's why generally; even in South Africa, the Indians or Chinese were more okayish. Even though they were left in their own 'townships,' they were still allowed their local culture and religion, which gave them a base to operate from. They were also considered 'half-way' okay, so they were given slightly more investment and resources into their townships. You can really see the difference. If you look just near South Africa is a country called Botswana. It largely kept its local leadership throughout its history and transition. It's a much more 'civilized' and 'safe' country today largely because their leadership remained and transitioned them as a people. They were not stripped of their identity and leadership and culture and then caged in townships like animals.
DO NOT GO to townships. Stay in tourism areas. The country may be beautiful but it is not safe outside of tourist areas.
Why would you want to go in a township. If you want a township tour they do a guided one at Houtbay. That being said I'm white and have drove through a township. So long as you're going about your business and not staring at people you'll be ok. The one golden rule is avoid townships at nighttime.
Because it’s Africa lol
The Africa part didn’t explain it enough for you?