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Culture and Identity: South African Miners and Some Comparators, 1920-1950
| The paper draws on the author's ongoing study of coal miners in the Transvaal, South Africa. Here he focusses on key aspects of black mine workers' culture, revealing much about their social identities. Issues covered include: housing and language, sex (with women and men), drinking and fighting, soccer and other sports, and religion. Material is drawn from extensive archival research and interviews with retired miners. Comparsions are then made with mine workers in other countries, in particular Britian, but also India and the US South (where the author conducted primary research). The paper exposes suprising similarities between the South African mine workers, who were not unionised in the period, and mineworkers in other countries in pre-union eras.
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