Extract

The toxicity of Johannesburg’s gold mines is hidden in plain sight. In Residual Governance: How South Africa Foretells Planetary Futures, Gabrielle Hecht focuses on uranium bearing mine dumps, acid mine drainage, and dust to narrate the consequences of pervasive and lethal toxicity on the lives of the people living with the consequences of mining every day. By dissecting the power relations of racial capitalism, Hecht shows how the mining industry and the apartheid state connived to concentrate toxicity on the most disadvantaged populations. Even in the post-apartheid era, marginalized Black populations continue to bear the brunt of asthma, silicosis, and skin diseases. Through elegant and engaging prose, breathtaking photography, and an admirable combination of sources, Hecht powerfully communicates the humane histories of this persistent toxicity. Bringing together histories of science and technology, environmental humanities, waste and discard studies, and African studies, Hecht asserts that Johannesburg’s stories have global importance, as they foreshadow the toxic dynamics of the planetary climate crisis.

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