What was the purpose of the Immorality Act?
Moreover, why was the Immorality Act passed?
In 1950 the ban on the "mixed" marriages was followed by an amendment to the immorality Act, passed in 1927 by Barry Hertzog's Pact Government to ban extra marital relations between white and black South Africans. Marriage between white and other ethnic groups was now a criminal offence.
Similarly, how did the Immorality Act affect people?
The Immorality Act, 1927 (Act No. 5 of 1927) prohibited sexual intercourse outside of marriage between "Europeans" (white people) and "natives" (black people). The penalty was up to five years' imprisonment for the man and four years' imprisonment for the woman.
The Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act, Act No 55 of 1949, was an apartheid law in South Africa that prohibited marriages between "Europeans" and "non-Europeans". It was among the first pieces of apartheid legislation to be passed following the National Party's rise to power in 1948.