Reference no: EM133286620

Question: The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission was enacted to address the human rights abuses committed during the apartheid regime with an overarching goal to promote reconciliation between victims and perpetrators of the apartheid system. Drawing on the materials assigned for this week discuss what you believe to be the lessons learned regarding the benefits and limitations of restorative justice practices in the context of state-sponsored violence and crimes committed by the state and by individuals acting with the de-facto authority of the state. Reflecting on the South African case, do you think the United States should institute a Truth and Reconciliation Commission for the descendants of American slavery and apartheid? Explain why or why not?

The invention of race, the imposition of arbitrary racial categories, and the division of humankind according to such arbitrary classifications have had far-reaching implications for all of humanity. Discuss what you perceive to be among the most problematic consequences of the construction of race and the practices of apartheid that accompany it.

Finally, explain how myth and memory as discussed in the reading for this week impact the reconstruction of the past and the interpretation of the present. Specifically, discuss how the Afrikaner reconstruction of South Africa's history impacted their relations with indigenous South Africans and their perceptions of Afrikaner claims to the land.