Landsat image of Cape Town and environs, looking roughly east. Cape Peninsula in the foreground; Table Bay with Robben Island to the left; False Bay with Seal Island (small white dot) to the right. The mountains of the Boland to the rear. The oval (long axis about 25km) roughly encompasses the Cape Flats.

The Cape Flats (Afrikaans Die Kaapse Vlakte) is an expansive, low-lying, flat area situated to the southeast of the the central business district of Cape Town. To most people in Cape Town, the area is known simply as "The Flats". Image File history File links Capeflats. ... Image File history File links Capeflats. ... The Landsat program is the longest running enterprise for acqusition of imagery of Earth from space. ... Afrikaans is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia with smaller numbers of speakers in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Zambia. ... City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo Area  - % water 1,644 km² 0. ...

Described by some as "apartheid's dumping ground", from the 1950's the area became home to people the apartheid government designated as "non-White." Race-based legislation such as the Group Areas Act and pass laws either forced "non-White" people out of more central urban areas designated for "White" people and into government-built townships in the Flats, or made living in the area illegal, forcing many people designated as "Black" into informal settlements elsewhere in the Flats. The Flats have since then been home to much of the population of Greater Cape Town. A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982. ... A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982. ... The Group Areas Act of 1950 was an act of parliament created under the apartheid government of South Africa that assigned races to different residential and business sections in urban areas. ... Pass Laws were introduced by the British governors in South Africa in 1923 to regulate movement of black Africans into urban areas. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Physical geography and early history

In geological terms, the area is essentially a vast sheet of aeolian sand, ultimately of marine origin, which has blown up from the adjacent beaches over something of the order of a hundred thousand years. Below the sand, the bedrock is the Malmesbury Shale. To the west the expanse of the Cape Flats is limited by rising ground that slopes up towards the mountainous heights of the Cape Peninsula, while in the east the land rises gradually towards the Hottentots Holland ranges and other elevated regions of the interior of the Boland. The Cape Peninsula, also known as the Peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope, is a 75 km peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. ... Boland is a District Municipality in Western Cape Province in South Africa The Boland District Municipality covers the Witzenberg, Drakenstein, Stellenbosch, Breede Valley, and Breede River / Winelands Local Municipalities. ...

Most of the sand is unconsolidated. However, in some places near the False Bay coast the oldest sand dunes have been cemented into a soft sandstone. These formations contain important fossils of animals such as the extinct Cape lion and also provide evidence that stone-age people hunted here tens of thousands of years ago.

The area has a Mediterranean climate, with warm dry summers and cool, damp winters. It is generally exposed to the wind, both from the NW (winter) and SE (summer). Flooding can be a problem, especially in July and August. Cold wet spells, especially in August and September, can make life very difficult for folk who live in sub-standard housing. A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles those of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea. ...

During the second half of the nineteenth century, the area was completely overrun by alien vegetation, mainly of Australian origin (Stirton, 1978). The plants included hakeas and especially wattles (genus Acacia). The principal reason for this infestation lay in decisions made by the colonial authorities. It was an era before the advent of modern technological methods for the construction of permanent roads and in those days the Cape Flats was a massive sea of unstabilized sand dunes that moved at will before the winds. This made travel between Cape Town and the interior very difficult, particularly for the large ox-drawn wagons of the time. The authorities decided to try to stabilize the sand with plants native to the British colonies of New South Wales and Western Australia. Species See text Hakea (Hakea) is a genus of about 110 species of shrubs and small trees in the Proteaceae, native to Australia, with the highest species diversity in Western Australia. ... Binomial name Acacia baileyana F.Muell. ... Species About 1,300; see List of Acacia species Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees of Gondwanian origin belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the Pea Family Fabaceae, first described from Africa by Linnaeus in 1773. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ...

The earliest importation of wattles was in 1827. Massive plantings were established in the 1840s and 1850s and the "good work" continued until well after 1875. The whole episode provides an outstanding example of how one generation, untroubled by doubt or the burden of self-examination, sows seeds of suffering for the next.

But, at the time, the plan worked well enough: the march of the dunes was arrested. The price paid, in ecological terms, was that the Cape Flats became almost a monoculture of invasive species. Serious efforts have in recent years been made to roll back this alien scourge. It has been suggested that Invasive plants be merged into this article or section. ...

The Cape Flats have undergone revolutionary change in the past half a century. In 1950 the area was practically uninhabited. There was a single, narrow road across the Flats from Cape Town to The Strand that ran between walls of alien rooikrans bushes and one could travel for miles without seeing any sign of habitation other that a few fences and a handful of farmhouses. Native antelope roamed at will between the dense thickets of wattles. The army used the area for military exercises and the few farmers who inhabited the Flats eked out a living by growing vegetables in pockets of relatively poor soil between the barren dunes. Modern amenities were unknown; there were no telephones, drinking water was collected in tanks from roofs and at night the rooms were lit by oil lamps. 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Strand (usually refered to as The Strand- in Afrikaans as Strand or Die Strand), is a seaside resort town situated on the eastern edge of False Bay between Maccasser and Gordons Bay, about 50 km southeast of Cape Town, in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Binomial name Acacia cyclops A.Cunn. ...

Modern history, politics and culture

The era of sand and antelopes vanished completely in little more than a generation. Vegetable farming persisted but to a much lesser extent, because urbanization enveloped vast tracts of land in short order. What is true for hakeas can be true for humans: one generation, untroubled by doubt, sowed the seeds of suffering for the next. During the apartheid era large housing projects were built here, mostly as part of the Nationalist government's larger effort to force the so-called Coloured community out of the central and western areas of Cape Town, which the political theorists of the day had designated as whites-only areas. This meant that only whites could reside there permanently. People of colour could work in the city but could not live there. Additionally, other large townships of black people (e.g., Khayelitsha and Gugulethu) grew up on the flats as a product of both informal settlement and forced government relocations. Since many Xhosa people of the region--including people born and raised in the Cape Town area--were designated under apartheid as residents of Bantustans, many were obliged to live in the area illegally, further contributing to the growth of informal settlements. These consisted in the main of shacks made of "tin" (in reality corrugated iron), cardboard and wood. A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982. ... In the South African and Namibian context, the term Coloured (also known as Bruinmense, Kleurlinge or Bruine Afrikaners) refers to a rather heterogenous group of people of mixed Khoisan, white European descent, Malay, Malagasy, Black (Bantu), and South Indian ancestry, especially in the Western Cape. ... Khayelitsha a township in South Africa, on the outskirts of Cape Town. ... The Xhosa people are a group of peoples of Bantu origins living in south-east South Africa. ... Bantustan refers to any of the territories designated as tribal homelands for black South Africans during the Apartheid era. ...

Since the end of apartheid, these communities are no longer legally bound by racial restrictions but history, language, economics and ethnic politics still contribute to homogeneity of local areas. So, for example, most residents of Mitchell's Plain likely still speak a locally-inflected version of Afrikaans, along with English and either they or their parents were designated as "Coloured" by apartheid; most residents of Khayelitsha still speak Xhosa and English and either they or their parents were designated as "Black" by apartheid. Nonetheless, some areas of the Cape Flats have an increasing diversity of residents, with Xhosa-speaking people an increasingly noticeable presence in some previously mainly Afrikaans-speaking areas. Afrikaans is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia with smaller numbers of speakers in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Zambia. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The Xhosa people are a group of peoples of Bantu origins living in south-east South Africa. ...

The Cape Flats is home to a remarkable cultural history.

Its music spans from the serious-minded jazz of Abdullah Ibrahim and Basil Coetzee and their anthem "Mannenberg" (named after a Cape Flats township), to the bubbly pop hits of Brenda Fassie; and continues in a new hip-hop movement (e.g., [1], [2]). Abdullah Ibrahim, born Adolph Johannes Brand, formally known as Dollar Brand (from a popular brand of matches), is a South African pianist and composer who was born in Cape Town in 1934. ... Basil Manenberg Coetzee (2 February 1944 _ 11 March 1998) was a South African musician, perhaps best known as a saxophonist. ... Brenda Fassie (November 3, 1964 – May 9, 2004), was a legendary South African pop singer, was widely considered the voice for disenfranchised blacks during apartheidand is affectionately known as the Queen of African Pop. ... Hip hop is a cultural movement that began among urban African Americans and Latinos in New York City in the early 1970s, and has since spread around the world. ...

Its religious communities include (to name only a few), Afrikaans-speaking congregations of the Dutch Reformed Church, Rastafarian communities, people who engage only in traditional Xhosa practices, syncretic Xhosa Christian churches, evangelical Christian churches, and southern Africa's largest Muslim community (drawing its oldest roots from the historic Cape Muslim community, which dates back to the 1600s). The Dutch Reformed village church of St. ... Rasta hairstyle Rastafarianism is a religious movement that believes in the divinity of ex Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie. ... Syncretism is the attempt to reconcile disparate, even opposing, beliefs and to meld practices of various schools of thought. ... The term evangelical has several distinct meanings: In its original sense, it means belonging or related to the Gospel (Greek: euangelion - good news) of the New Testament. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) (sometimes also spelled Moslem) is an adherent of Islam. ... The Cape Malays are an ethnic group who can claim descent from slaves brought to South Africa from Indonesia starting from 1667. ...

And its political history is dazzlingly complex and sometimes baffling even to insiders: for instance, the politics of the so-called Coloured communities of the Cape Flats have included Trotskyist activism in earlier years, and mobilization for the United Democratic Front in the 80s; and then, widespread support for the historically white National Party (which had presided over apartheid) in the early post-apartheid elections. More recently, the area has seen an expansion of African National Congress strength from its base in the black townships and into historically so-called Coloured areas, as well as a particularly strong local growth of left-wing social movements like the Treatment Action Campaign which offer a critique of government policies. Sometimes violent Islamist movements have emerged from Cape Flats communities[3], along with other notable figures within the Muslim community who embody an ecumenical strain of religious progressivism. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. ... Categories: Politics stubs | Liberal related stubs | Liberal parties | Malawi political parties ... The National Party (Afrikaans: Nasionale Party) (with its members sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats) was the governing party of South Africa from 1948 until 1994, and was disbanded in 2005. ... The African National Congress (ANC) is a centre-left political party, and has been South Africas governing party (in a coalition) since the establishment of majority rule in May 1994. ... The Treatment Action Campaign is a South African grassroots pressure group which was founded by Zackie Achmat, an HIV-positive activist who refused anti-retroviral treatment (ARVs) until they were universally available. ... Islamism is a political ideology derived from the conservative religious views of Muslim fundamentalism. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) (sometimes also spelled Moslem) is an adherent of Islam. ...

Almost all of the communities of the Cape Flats remain, to one degree or another, poverty stricken. Serious social problems include a high rate of unemployment and disturbing levels of gang activity. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, there was significant armed conflict between various gangs and PAGAD (People Against Gangsterism and Drugs), a vigilante organization. Dorothea Langes Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California during the Great Depression. ... A gang is a group of individuals who share a common identity and, in current usage, engage in illegal activities. ... This article is about the year. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) was formed in 1996 as a community anticrime group fighting drugs and violence in the Cape Flats section of Cape Town, South Africa, but by early 1998 had also become antigovernment and anti-Western. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

A wide range of community empowerment organizations work nonviolently to combat poverty, crime and health problems and the role of civil society in many parts of the area is relatively strong. Civil society or civil institutions refers to the totality of voluntary civic and social organizations or institutions which form the basis of a functioning society as opposed to the force backed structures of a state (regardless of that states political system). ...

References

Stirton, C.H. 1978. Plant invaders. Department of Nature and Environmental Conservation of the Cape Provincial Administation, Cape Town, about 175pp. ISBN 0-7984-0092-7

External links

• Cape Flats Details An extensive photojournalism project on the area and its people.
• Capeflats.org A personal web site with an overview of the language, politics and culture of the area.
• CAFDA The Cape Flats Development Association's website.
• Cape Flats tourism A government Cape Flats tourism initiative hopes to bring more visitors.
• Hip hop "comes home" BBC view of the Cape Flats hip hop scene.
• Minstrel Carnival A foreign scholar joins a local celebration.
• Seeing South Africa A Washington Post travel writer visits.
• CapeFlatsNature.org Organization aims to organize impoverished residents to help sustain areas of biodiversity.
• CFNR The website of the Cape Flats Nature Reserve.
• Red Cross aids Cape Flats The Red Cross responds to the Cape Flats' special vulnerability to floods.
• ISS paper June 2003 paper on "The social contradictions of organised crime on the Cape Flats."
• Surfline Cape Flats surfers.

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	Province of Western Cape Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Africa. ... Capital Cape Town Largest city Cape Town Area  - Total Ranked 4th 129,370 km² Premier (List) Ebrahim Rasool (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density (2001) Ranked 5th 4,524,335 3,956,875 35/km² (ranked 6th) Languages Afrikaans (55. ...
Capital:	Cape Town The following is a list of the capitals of the provinces of South Africa. ... City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo Area  - % water 1,644 km² 0. ...
Regions:	Cape Peninsula | Cape Winelands | Garden Route | Little Karoo The Cape Peninsula, also known as the Peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope, is a 75 km peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. ... The Cape Winelands is a region of the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... The Garden Route is a popular and scenic stretch of the southern coast of South Africa. ... The Karoo is a semi-desert region of South Africa. ...
Largest cities:	Cape Town | George | Knysna | Oudtshoorn | Paarl | Robertson | Stellenbosch | Swellendam | Worcester City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo Area  - % water 1,644 km² 0. ... George is the administrative capital of the Western Cape Province, South Africa. ... Knysna (pronounced NACE-nuh) is a town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Oudtshoorn is the largest town in in the Little Karoo region of South Africa. ... Paarl is one of the three oldest European settlements in South Africa and forms part of the Western Cape Province. ... We dont have an article called Robertson, Western Cape Start this article Search for Robertson, Western Cape in. ... Stellenbosch is the second oldest European settlement in South Africa after Cape Town, and is located in the Western Cape Province. ... Swellendam Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Worcester, South Africa is a town situated about 120 km from Cape Town, in the Breede River Valley. ...
Municipalities:	District: City of Cape Town | Cape Winelands | Central Karoo | Eden | Overberg | West Coast | City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo Area  - % water 1,644 km² 0. ... Breede River Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Central Karoo Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... The Garden Route is a popular and scenic stretch of the southern coast of South Africa. ... Overberg Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... West Coast Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Local: Beaufort West | Bergrivier | Bitou | Breede River/Winelands | Breede Valley | Cape Agulhas | Cederberg | Drakenstein | George | Hessequa | Kannaland | Knysna | Laingsburg | Matzikama | Mossel Bay | Oudtshoorn | Overstrand | Prince Albert | Saldanha Bay | South Cape | Stellenbosch | Swartland | Swellendam | Theewaterskloof | Witzenberg | Beaufort West Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Bergrivier Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Bitou Local Municipality (formely known as Plettenberg Bay Municipality) is a municipality part of Eden District Municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Breede River/Winelands Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Breede Valley Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Cape Agulhas Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Cederberg Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Drakenstein Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... George Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Hessequa Local Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Kannaland Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Knysna Local Municipality is a municipality part of Eden District Municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Laingsburg Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Matzikama Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Mossel Bay Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Oudtshoorn Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Overstrand Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Prince Albert Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Saldanha Bay Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... South Cape Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Stellenbosch Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Swartland Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Swellendam Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Theewaterskloof Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ... Witzenberg Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. ...