1940s and 1950s: In 1948, Daniel Malan and the National Party institute apartheid, a legalized system of separation and oppression, which gives preference to white - especially Afrikaner - interests.

1960s and 1970s: The disenfranchising effects of apartheid galvanize South African resistance groups, some of which exchange their nonviolent approaches for a move to militant opposition. The South African government kills or imprisons many resistance leaders, including Nelson Mandela, the head of the African National Congress, who in 1964 is sentenced to life in prison. In 1977, Steve Biko, the originator of the Black Consciousness resistance movement, dies from massive head injuries inflicted during his interrogation by the police.

Today: Following the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990, Mandela successfully wins the presidency in 1994 and serves until 1999. During his presidency, Mandela takes the first steps to reverse the effects of apartheid, but tensions remain between some ethnic groups.

1940s...