Racial discrimination in post-Apartheid South Africa? The stories of Coloured people in Johannesburg, South Africa.

This article examines perceptions of racial discrimination experienced by Coloured people, a racial minority in the Black African-majority context of post-Apartheid South Africa, specifically in Westbury, Johannesburg. Based on fourteen in-depth interviews, participants reported race-based discrimination in housing, employment, service delivery, political representation, and education, often describing themselves as "not Black enough" despite official government classification of Coloured people as part of the broader "Black People" category for affirmative action. The study interprets these experiences through racial discrimination theory and social exclusion theory, highlighting three interrelated structural forces: legacies of historical racial exclusions, the neoliberal macro-economic order, and government neglect. While some participants acknowledged that Black South Africans also face socioeconomic challenges, the findings suggest that perceived racial marginalization of Coloured people may contribute to social tensions within South Africa’s complex racial landscape.