The Economics of the Colour Bar: A Study of the Economic Origins and Consequences of Racial Segregation in South Africa - Paperback

by W. H. Hutt (Author)

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Who were the original and most passionate opponents of apartheid in South Africa? The classical liberals, and this book was their most important weapon against the problem of racial injustice.

William H. Hutt, an Austro-classical economist in South Africa (later he taught at the University of Dallas), explains that apartheid originated as a labor-union mechanism for artificially restricting the supply of labor and thereby driving up wages for the privileged. He further explains that nearly all the ensuing legal disabilities for blacks in South Africa stemmed from the problem of labor union political influence.

As an old-time liberal, he urged the dismantling of the system to forestall a revolutionary environment that would have nationalized industry and socialized the economy. The study first appeared in 1964, and it was incredibly prescient. It remains the definitive study.