Alex Beresford
Biographic Data
| ID | 951771 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Alex Beresford |
| GIVEN NAMES | Alex |
| FAMILY NAME | Beresford |
| SIGNATURE | BERESFORD A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Leeds |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-9283-2987 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 19 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 76 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 19 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1979 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Just transitions in global economies? Union and worker understandings of justice in Germany and South Africa compared
This article draws on fieldwork in Germany and South Africa, including interviews with unionists, environmental activists, and policy-makers, to compare experiences and perspectives of workers and communities affected by climate policies and the transition to industrial decarbonisation. There is broad support for a just transition in Germany, with workers and their unions actively promoting climate action – though the notion of ‘just transition’ …
Creating Space for Africa in International Relations? Contesting Ontological Security through Space Exploration
This article provides original insights into why and how space exploration offers a romantic trigger for the wider contemplation and reimagining of global power relations and ontological security, in terms of our sense of identity and being-in-the-world. We demonstrate how the rapid expansion of African space programs provokes new conversations about African roles and status in international politics, forcing us to reconsider how we understand Af…
Land, Labour and Liberation
This issue, the first of Volume 50, marks the beginning of the celebrations of the Journal of Southern African Studies’s half centenary. Perhaps fittingly, it revisits some of the core debates that
Conceptualising the emancipatory potential of populism
A central claim common to all populist movements is that they are committed to giving voice and power to those who have been forgotten, maligned, or marginalised by the status quo. However, consensus holds that they rarely – if ever –fulfil this commitment. And yet, there is a gap in our understanding of why. This article provides an original conceptual distinction between vanguardist and devolutionary populism. While the former is concerned with…
Understanding bricolage in norm development
Within international relations the normative agency of African actors is often downplayed or derided. This article develops the concept of bricolage to offer a novel understanding of norm development and contestation in international relations, including the role African actors play in this. We contend that a norm's core hypothesis can be thought of as the nucleus of a norm. In the case of complex international norms, if this core hypothesis is s…
Liberation movements and stalled democratic transitions
The lack of convergence towards liberal democracy in some African countries reflects neither a permanent state of political aberration, nor necessarily a prolonged transitional phase through which countries pass once the "right" conditions are met. Examining the cases of two ruling parties, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and the African National Congress in South Africa, we develop the concept of productive liminality to explain countries susp…
Africa rising
Infectious injustice
This article identifies the long-term political factors that contributed to the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone, factors which are largely overlooked by the emerging international focus on building resilient health systems. We argue that the country exhibits critical symptoms of the recurrent crises of a gatekeeper state, including acute external dependency, patron–client politics, endemic corruption and weak state capacity. A coterie of actors, bot…
The politics of globalized labour in Africa
A responsibility to protect Africa from the West? South Africa and the Nato intervention in Libya
Power, patronage, and gatekeeper politics in South Africa
This article examines the rise of gatekeeper politics within the ANC, drawing on an analysis of ANC discussion documents, key informant interviews with senior party officials, and interviews and observations from the ANC's centenary policy conference. On the basis of this material, I identify the symptoms and consequences of gatekeeper politics, including the growth of patronage networks, crony capitalism, and bitter factional struggles within th…
South Africa pushed to the limit
Hein Marais' most recent book builds upon the reputation he has built for himself following his seminal exploration of the transition to democracy in South Africa, South Africa: limits to change: t
Nelson Mandela and the politics of South Africa's unfinished liberation
I would also like to thank Ray Bush, Emma Anderson, Gabrielle Lynch and the School of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) peer reading group at the University of Leeds for their comments on an earlier version of this paper
Africa
Englebert's work represents a seminal contribution to the literature on African statehood and sovereignty. The questions he is trying to answer are not new, however: why is it that African states have proven so durable since independence, and why are there so few secessionist movements in Africa? He surveys the core literature in this area with great delicacy and expertise. This literature, in short, has argued that while African states have juri…
Organised labour and the politics of class formation in post-apartheid South Africa
This paper will examine the processes of class formation being augmented by South Africa's democratic transition and the impacts these processes are having on trade union organising. Through a case study of the National Union of Mineworkers in the energy industry, it will be argued that affirmative action and employment equity policies are opening up divisions within the union and eroding its unifying class identity. This poses a great challenge,…
The Politics of Regenerative Nationalism in South Africa
In recent years the ANC government has encountered increasing unrest in the form of a wave of community protests and industrial action. Some analysts argue that this reflects widespread antipathy towards the ANC's ‘exhausted nationalism’ and the beginnings of a post-nationalist political era where class politics takes centre stage. This article will examine the position of South Africa's powerful organised working class within this context, with …
Comrades 'Back on Track'? The Durability of the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa
The article examines the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa, drawing on in-depth interviews with members of the National Union of Mineworkers employed by Eskom, South Africa's electricity parastatal. The article challenges the widespread argument that the alliance is heading for an inevitable break-up by interrogating the resilience of workers' support for the ANC. It is argued that workers continue to identify a broad range of aspirations with …
The Clarendon Edition of the Works of John Locke: The Correspondence of John Locke: In Eight Volumes, Vol. 6: Letters Nos. 2199–2664
The Clarendon Edition of the Works of John Locke: The Correspondence of John Locke: In Eight Volumes, Vol. 5: Letters Nos. 1702–2198
Power, patronage, and gatekeeper politics in South Africa
This article examines the rise of gatekeeper politics within the ANC, drawing on an analysis of ANC discussion documents, key informant interviews with senior party officials, and interviews and observations from the ANC's centenary policy conference. On the basis of this material, I identify the symptoms and consequences of gatekeeper politics, including the growth of patronage networks, crony capitalism, and bitter factional struggles within th…
Liberation movements and stalled democratic transitions
The lack of convergence towards liberal democracy in some African countries reflects neither a permanent state of political aberration, nor necessarily a prolonged transitional phase through which countries pass once the "right" conditions are met. Examining the cases of two ruling parties, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and the African National Congress in South Africa, we develop the concept of productive liminality to explain countries susp…
Organised labour and the politics of class formation in post-apartheid South Africa
This paper will examine the processes of class formation being augmented by South Africa's democratic transition and the impacts these processes are having on trade union organising. Through a case study of the National Union of Mineworkers in the energy industry, it will be argued that affirmative action and employment equity policies are opening up divisions within the union and eroding its unifying class identity. This poses a great challenge,…
Infectious injustice
This article identifies the long-term political factors that contributed to the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone, factors which are largely overlooked by the emerging international focus on building resilient health systems. We argue that the country exhibits critical symptoms of the recurrent crises of a gatekeeper state, including acute external dependency, patron–client politics, endemic corruption and weak state capacity. A coterie of actors, bot…
Nelson Mandela and the politics of South Africa's unfinished liberation
I would also like to thank Ray Bush, Emma Anderson, Gabrielle Lynch and the School of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) peer reading group at the University of Leeds for their comments on an earlier version of this paper
The Politics of Regenerative Nationalism in South Africa
In recent years the ANC government has encountered increasing unrest in the form of a wave of community protests and industrial action. Some analysts argue that this reflects widespread antipathy towards the ANC's ‘exhausted nationalism’ and the beginnings of a post-nationalist political era where class politics takes centre stage. This article will examine the position of South Africa's powerful organised working class within this context, with …
Comrades 'Back on Track'? The Durability of the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa
The article examines the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa, drawing on in-depth interviews with members of the National Union of Mineworkers employed by Eskom, South Africa's electricity parastatal. The article challenges the widespread argument that the alliance is heading for an inevitable break-up by interrogating the resilience of workers' support for the ANC. It is argued that workers continue to identify a broad range of aspirations with …
Conceptualising the emancipatory potential of populism
A central claim common to all populist movements is that they are committed to giving voice and power to those who have been forgotten, maligned, or marginalised by the status quo. However, consensus holds that they rarely – if ever –fulfil this commitment. And yet, there is a gap in our understanding of why. This article provides an original conceptual distinction between vanguardist and devolutionary populism. While the former is concerned with…
Africa rising
A responsibility to protect Africa from the West? South Africa and the Nato intervention in Libya
The politics of globalized labour in Africa
The Clarendon Edition of the Works of John Locke: The Correspondence of John Locke: In Eight Volumes, Vol. 5: Letters Nos. 1702–2198
The Clarendon Edition of the Works of John Locke: The Correspondence of John Locke: In Eight Volumes, Vol. 6: Letters Nos. 2199–2664
Comrades 'Back on Track'? The Durability of the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa
The article examines the Tripartite Alliance in South Africa, drawing on in-depth interviews with members of the National Union of Mineworkers employed by Eskom, South Africa's electricity parastatal. The article challenges the widespread argument that the alliance is heading for an inevitable break-up by interrogating the resilience of workers' support for the ANC. It is argued that workers continue to identify a broad range of aspirations with …
Organised labour and the politics of class formation in post-apartheid South Africa
This paper will examine the processes of class formation being augmented by South Africa's democratic transition and the impacts these processes are having on trade union organising. Through a case study of the National Union of Mineworkers in the energy industry, it will be argued that affirmative action and employment equity policies are opening up divisions within the union and eroding its unifying class identity. This poses a great challenge,…
The Politics of Regenerative Nationalism in South Africa
In recent years the ANC government has encountered increasing unrest in the form of a wave of community protests and industrial action. Some analysts argue that this reflects widespread antipathy towards the ANC's ‘exhausted nationalism’ and the beginnings of a post-nationalist political era where class politics takes centre stage. This article will examine the position of South Africa's powerful organised working class within this context, with …
Africa
Englebert's work represents a seminal contribution to the literature on African statehood and sovereignty. The questions he is trying to answer are not new, however: why is it that African states have proven so durable since independence, and why are there so few secessionist movements in Africa? He surveys the core literature in this area with great delicacy and expertise. This literature, in short, has argued that while African states have juri…
South Africa pushed to the limit
Hein Marais' most recent book builds upon the reputation he has built for himself following his seminal exploration of the transition to democracy in South Africa, South Africa: limits to change: t
Nelson Mandela and the politics of South Africa's unfinished liberation
I would also like to thank Ray Bush, Emma Anderson, Gabrielle Lynch and the School of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) peer reading group at the University of Leeds for their comments on an earlier version of this paper
The politics of globalized labour in Africa
A responsibility to protect Africa from the West? South Africa and the Nato intervention in Libya
Power, patronage, and gatekeeper politics in South Africa
This article examines the rise of gatekeeper politics within the ANC, drawing on an analysis of ANC discussion documents, key informant interviews with senior party officials, and interviews and observations from the ANC's centenary policy conference. On the basis of this material, I identify the symptoms and consequences of gatekeeper politics, including the growth of patronage networks, crony capitalism, and bitter factional struggles within th…
Africa rising
Infectious injustice
This article identifies the long-term political factors that contributed to the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone, factors which are largely overlooked by the emerging international focus on building resilient health systems. We argue that the country exhibits critical symptoms of the recurrent crises of a gatekeeper state, including acute external dependency, patron–client politics, endemic corruption and weak state capacity. A coterie of actors, bot…
Liberation movements and stalled democratic transitions
The lack of convergence towards liberal democracy in some African countries reflects neither a permanent state of political aberration, nor necessarily a prolonged transitional phase through which countries pass once the "right" conditions are met. Examining the cases of two ruling parties, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and the African National Congress in South Africa, we develop the concept of productive liminality to explain countries susp…
Understanding bricolage in norm development
Within international relations the normative agency of African actors is often downplayed or derided. This article develops the concept of bricolage to offer a novel understanding of norm development and contestation in international relations, including the role African actors play in this. We contend that a norm's core hypothesis can be thought of as the nucleus of a norm. In the case of complex international norms, if this core hypothesis is s…
Conceptualising the emancipatory potential of populism
A central claim common to all populist movements is that they are committed to giving voice and power to those who have been forgotten, maligned, or marginalised by the status quo. However, consensus holds that they rarely – if ever –fulfil this commitment. And yet, there is a gap in our understanding of why. This article provides an original conceptual distinction between vanguardist and devolutionary populism. While the former is concerned with…
Land, Labour and Liberation
This issue, the first of Volume 50, marks the beginning of the celebrations of the Journal of Southern African Studies’s half centenary. Perhaps fittingly, it revisits some of the core debates that
Creating Space for Africa in International Relations? Contesting Ontological Security through Space Exploration
This article provides original insights into why and how space exploration offers a romantic trigger for the wider contemplation and reimagining of global power relations and ontological security, in terms of our sense of identity and being-in-the-world. We demonstrate how the rapid expansion of African space programs provokes new conversations about African roles and status in international politics, forcing us to reconsider how we understand Af…
Just transitions in global economies? Union and worker understandings of justice in Germany and South Africa compared
This article draws on fieldwork in Germany and South Africa, including interviews with unionists, environmental activists, and policy-makers, to compare experiences and perspectives of workers and communities affected by climate policies and the transition to industrial decarbonisation. There is broad support for a just transition in Germany, with workers and their unions actively promoting climate action – though the notion of ‘just transition’ …
Political science (16 works) · Politics (15 works) · Law (14 works) · Sociology (14 works) · Political economy (11 works) · Law (9 works) · South African History and Culture (6 works) · Labor Movements and Unions (5 works) · Democracy (4 works) · Economics (4 works)