Banking on South Africa

Year Published:  1977   First Published:  1977
Pages:  20min  
Book Type:  Videotape
Resource Type:  Film/Video
Cx Number:  CX422

Abstract:  While this slide/tape program was produced in the U.S.A. it refers to specific Canadian banks involved in loans to the government of South Africa. The program begins with the image of the young child saving pennies in a piggy bank. It then presents the situation lived by black people in South Africa today under the government's Apartheid policy. The contrast between the rich natural resources, the affluence of the whilte population, the extensive urban development and the poverty, disease and segregation of the blacks is underlined along with moving background music. The program then begins a more detailed analysis of the reasons behind these contrasts by looking at the performance of North American Corporations, particularly banks, in subsidizing the development of a white-oriented economy and racist government. The Royal Bank of Canada, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the Bank of Montreal, are all specifically mentioned. The fundamental question raised by the program asks: "What would you do if the banks in which you deposited your money betrayed your trust by using those funds in a way you would never approve?" And it concludes that some injustices are so outrageous and profound that they simply cannot be overlooked.

Subject Headings

• South Africa