The Bushman Myth: The Making of a Namibian Underclass

372 Pages·2000·63.196 MB·English

by  Robert J Gordon and Stuart Sholto-Douglas

Bushman Myth
The
The Making a Numibian Underclass
of
Second Edition
-
ROBERT
I
J.
GORDON
and
STUART
SHOLTO
DOUGLAS
Conflict and Social Change Series • Westview Press
Library
Public
Boston
The
BUSHMAN MYTH
Digitized by the Internet Archive
2015
in
https://archive.org/details/bushmanmythmakinOOgord
, , , ,
Conflict and Social Change Series
Series Editors
Scott Whiteford and William Derman
Michigan State University
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Bushman casts in the South African Museum in Cape Town have always attracted
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SECOND EDITION
The
BUSHMAN MYTH
The Making
of
a Namibian Underclass
ROBERT GORDON
J.
University ofVermont
STUART SHOLTO DOUGLAS
Rice University
A MemberofthePerseus Books Group
All rights reserved. Printedin the UnitedStatesofAmerica. No partofthis publication may
be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, in-
cludingphotocopy, recording, oranyinformation storage and retrieval system, without per-
mission inwritingfrom the publisher.
Copyright©2000byWestviewPress,AMemberofthe PerseusBooksGroup
Published in 2000 in the United States ofAmericabyWestviewPress, 5500 CentralAvenue,
Boulder, Colorado 80301-2877, and in the United Kingdom by Westview Press, 12 Hid’s
Copse Road, CumnorHill, Oxford OX29JJ
Finduson theWorldWideWebatwww.westviewpress.com
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Gordon,Robert 1947-
J.,
TheBushman—myth : themakingofaNamibianunderclass/ RobertJ. Gordon,Stuart
SholtoDouglas. 2nded.
—
p. cm. (Conflictandsocialchangeseries)
Rev. ed. of:The Bushmanmyth / RobertJ. Gordon. 1992.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN0-8133-3581-7 (pb)
—
1. San (African people). 2. Namibia Socialconditions. 3. Culture conflict.
4. Intercultural communication. I. SholtoDouglas, Stuart. II.Title. III. Series.
DT1558.S38 G67 2000
—
306’096881 dc21
99-049180
Th paperused in this publication meets the requirements oftheAmerican National Stan-
9876543
dardforPermanenceofPaperforPrintedLibraryMaterialsZ39.48-1984.
10
PERSEUS
ONDEMAND
?
Contents
List ofTables andIllustrations xi
Preface xiii
1 TheBushmen:AMergerofFantasy andNightmare 1
The Politics ofLabeling Bushmen, 4
Speaking for the Bushmen, 8
Storyline, 10
Part 1: What*s in a Name
2 LocatingtheBushmen 15
3 Bushman CopperandAutonomy 25
Copper and the Ovambo, 25
Relationships with Pastoralists, 28
4 TheIncorporation ofBushmen into the WorldSystem 33
Contemporary Views ofBushmen, 36
The Demise ofthe Trade Boom, 38
Upingtonia and the First Namibian War
ofLiberation, 40
5 ClassifyingBushmen:ItinerantScientists 43
Part 2: The ColonialPresence
6 TheImposition ofthe ColonialState 49
thi
7 The “BushmanPlague” of1911
Academics and the Notion ofa
Bushman Reserve, 60
The Influence ofthe Missions, 64
Education Through Labor, 65
8 FromPolicy toPractice
9 BushmanHunts andBushman Gangs
Bushman Patrols, 78
The “Notorious” Hans Gang, 81
Part 3: The Sacred Trust
10 SouthAfricanRapprochement
Land and Murder, 92
The van Ryneveld Affair, 92
11 LaboringLegitimacy
Legalizing Action Against Bushmen, 102
Fear as Social Control, 103
The Elusive Bushmen as a Police Problem, 105
12 Beyond thePoliceZone:DisruptingtheLaborSupply
13 ExtendingAdministrative Control:Bushmen “Reserved”
Native Reserves, 119
The Etosha Game Park, 123
Native Reserves Beyond the Police Zone, 124
14 Reaction and Counterreaction
Tightening the Legal Noose, 129
From Object to Subject in Bushman Banditry, 132
15 Bushmen “Tamed”:Life on theFarm
Missionary Efforts: The Roman Catholics, 143
Missionary Efforts: Lutheran Proselytization, 144