Very few farm murders appear to be committed for political reasons. But the response to them is often political.

Making up less than half a percent of all homicides reported each year, farm killings dominate the national narrative on violence. At the heart of the conflict is a long history of violence on agricultural land, and deep-rooted fears and prejudices about race, belonging, and who gets to feel safe in South Africa.

In this powerful new book, journalist and violence researcher Dr Nechama Brodie challenges many of the myths used to narrate farm killings. The book explores news reports, data, legal cases and expert research on violence on farms, including violence experienced by farm labourers and in black communities surrounding mostly whiteowned farmlands, which is often overlooked and under-reported. The story it reveals lays bare the connections and disconnections between people, place and past that contribute to the violence of the present.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr Nechama Brodie is a journalist and author of seven books, including critically acclaimed The Joburg Book and Femicide in South Africa. She holds a PhD from the University of the Witwatersrand, where she is also an occasional lecturer, and heads the Homicide Media Tracker project, researching media coverage of violence. She lives in Joburg.

Farm Killings in South Africa is published by Kwela, an imprint of NB Publishers