April 27, 1950: South Africa passes Group Areas Act, formally segregating races and beginning era of apartheid

Sunday 27 April 2008

The Group Areas Act of 1950 was created by the apartheid government of South Africa and assigned racial groups to different residential and business sections in urban areas. An effect of the law was to prevent nonwhites from living in the most developed areas. The law led to the forced removal of nonwhites from homes located in areas designated for whites. The act was repealed 41 years later on June 5, 1991.

Apartheid was a system of legalized racial segregation enforced by the South African government between 1948 and 1994. Apartheid was dismantled from 1990 to 1993.