Overcoming the Divide: An Interpretive Exploration of Young Black South Africans’ Lived Experiences of Upward Mobility in Central South Africa

Michael Kok; Jan K. Coetzee; Florian Elliker

doi:10.18778/1733-8077.13.1.04

Authors

Michael Kok University of the Free State, South Africa
Jan K. Coetzee University of the Free State, South Africa
Florian Elliker University of the Free State, South Africa; University of St. Gallen, Switzerland

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8077.13.1.04

Keywords:

Identity, Class, Race, Upward Mobility, Young Professionals, Phenomenology, Narrative Research

Abstract

The institutionalized racism that once subjugated the Black majority during South Africa’s apartheid years gave way after 1994 to legislature that aims to bring the country into a new era of egalitarianism. A striking result of this has been the steady flow of young Black people achieving upward mobility and making the transition into the middle- and upper-classes. This article explores young Black South Africans’ lived experiences of upward mobility, as well as their efforts to negotiate between separate and often contrasting identities by applying an interpretive sociological framework to their narrative accounts.

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Author Biographies

Michael Kok, University of the Free State, South Africa

Michael Kok obtained his Master’s degree in the program The Narrative Study of Lives, Department of Sociology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.

Jan K. Coetzee, University of the Free State, South Africa

Jan K. Coetzee is a Senior Professor of Sociology and Director of the program The Narrative Study of Lives in the Department of Sociology at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. He specializes in qualitative sociology and serves on several international advisory boards.

Florian Elliker, University of the Free State, South Africa; University of St. Gallen, Switzerland

Florian Elliker is a Research Fellow in the program The Narrative Study of Lives, Department of Sociology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. He is also a Senior Lecturer in the Institute of Sociology, University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

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