SIMMERING HOSTILITIES, GROUP IDENTITY, AND CONTESTED AUTOCHTHONY BELIEFS IN SETTLER SOCIETIES

Simmering hostilities and their flashpoints of intergroup conflict are endemic features of unstable societies that are characterized by protracted intractable conflict. In this chapter, we examine the reasons why simmering hostilities become so entrenched. We argue that opinion-based groups employ autochthony narratives to frame a sense of entitlement and resistance when crucial moments of social change are being negotiated. We focus on the racial instabilities of the post-colonial situation with particular reference to the way autochthony narratives of White settlers in South Africa drive anti-change sentiments. By examining two key flashpoints of simmering hostility, we show how present-day struggles for justice and social change in South Africa are structured around concerns about nativeness, ownership, belonging, and entitlement.