Poverty is arguably the most pressing social, economic and political problem we face in South Africa. While the exclusion of the poor occurs in very many countries, in South Africa it has a distinctive extra dimension. Here, poverty has been profoundly racialised by law, by social practice, and by prejudice.Drawing on the work of economists, social scientists, and historians, this short introduction by Colin Bundy presents a powerful and insightful account of the history and nature of poverty in South Africa. Above all, it emphasises the lived experience of what it is to be poor, the reality suffered by millions of our fellow men, women and children.