ABSTRACT
Race, class, gender, lifestyle and geopolitical location are mediators/determinants of levels of quantitative and qualitative participation. Youth, however, have not been the only section of the South Africa (SA) population that has been demonstrating this political behaviour; older adults as well. The 1990s "witnessed the decline of the youth movements, largely owing to the commencement of negotiations" between the apartheid state, represented mainly by the National Party, and newly unbanned liberation movements, represented mainly by the African National Congress. The public party meetings revolved mainly around higher ideals of liberation, communal needs and call for democracy. Young people would gather in public schools, university halls, community halls and other equivalent physical spaces to discuss matters of mutual concern. These spaces were minuscule components of the broader public sphere that made up the SA public sphere of public communication, made up of multiple public spheres of various sizes.
