Sampson, Anthony. Black and Gold. New York: Pantheon Books, 1987. 280 pages.
British journalist Anthony Sampson has several excellent books to
his credit, most of which deal with the workings of big corporations and
finance in international politics. In the early 1950s he was an editor
of a black magazine in Johannesburg. Over the years he returned to South
Africa a half-dozen times to cover stories, and added two more visits in
the mid-1980s that form the basis of this book. It treats South African
history mainly from 1978, when P.W. Botha became prime minister, to 1986,
when pressure from the international boycott was bringing the issue of
apartheid to a head. Sampson's broad experience, and his access to key
players in South Africa and the international corporate community, make
this a compelling narrative.
Several chapters of this book describe the dynamics of corporate
policy toward South Africa, which were essentially reactionary. In the
late 1970s, U.S. corporations felt significant pressure from a grass-roots
anti-apartheid movement consisting of liberals, students, and religious
groups. Frequently this movement manifested itself at shareholder meetings.
Since most U.S. corporations were not making enormous profits in South
Africa, some eventually pulled out just to reduce the nuisance factor.
In 1986, as this book comes to a close, Congress passed a sanctions bill
with a margin that prevented Reagan's threatened veto.
ISBN 0-394-56053-1
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