As I celebrated America’s 250th Independence Day in Florida, I could not help but think back to my own celebration of independence 60 years ago.

Escaping South Africa, a country then deeply embroiled in the cruelty of apartheid and seeking to live in a country where Jews could build a meaningful life, I arrived in Israel on July 4, 1966.

I craved a homeland where I would no longer be barred from interacting with anyone I might meet, regardless of ethnicity, skin color or religion. I wanted to live in a country where everyone enjoyed freedom of speech and freedom of religion, as well as the right to a decent education and the right to vote. I wanted to be free from oppression!

The purpose of the abhorrent racial segregation policies (Apartheid), embraced by the minority white South African government, was to keep all ethnic groups separated and carefully controlled, so that the “superior” white race could rule the country.

The concept of eugenics (that some races are superior to others) was a major part of the reasoning behind Apartheid and an intrinsic part of the country’s culture. Sympathy for the Nazis, who also practiced eugenics, had been fairly common in South Africa during WWII, and the discriminatory practices and antisemitism associated with it became commonplace.

Growing up under Apartheid laws, I was relatively privileged because my skin was white, defining me as a member of the “white race.”

In Apartheid South Africa, white people were referred to as “whites” and Black people were referred to as “Blacks.” White people were able to move freely in the city of Johannesburg, but we were not permitted to enter the “Townships” that surrounded Johannesburg. It was in these Townships that the city’s dark-skinned Black workers and their families were forced to live in deplorable conditions. The only Black workers permitted to live within the Johannesburg city limits were domestic servants.

Soweto, the largest of the “Townships,” had close to one million inhabitants. Black people were controlled by “pass laws” and required to have a valid “pass” document to work in Johannesburg. Once in the city, they could only........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)