page_title: Alexandra, Gauteng
section_title: 2000s to present
hierarchical_section_title: Alexandra, Gauteng / History / 2000s to present
caption_attribution_description: English: Kids Playing soccer in Alexandra Township
context_page_description: Alexandra, informally abbreviated to Alex, is a township in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It forms part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality and is located near the upper-class suburb of Sandton. Alexandra is bounded by Wynberg on the west, Marlboro and Kelvin on the north, Kew, Lombardy West and Lombardy East on the south. It is commonly known as "Gomorrah" among local residents. Alexandra is one of the poorest urban areas in the country. Alexandra is situated on the banks of the Jukskei River. In addition to its original, reasonably well-built houses, it also has a large number of informal dwellings or "shacks" called imikhukhu.
context_section_description: To assist in renewing and uplift the community, the Alexandra Renewal Project was launched in 2000.  The project has caused clashes between residents and companies, including SA Waste Holdings (Pty) Ltd, a waste disposal company based in nearby Marlboro.
  Approximately 3,000 houses have been built for relocation purposes to date. In August 2006 American business students conducted a photography project with 190 of the youth of Alexandra.  It resulted in a book, alexandra: our view of ekasi. In June/July 2008 the grassroots photographic project Shooting Jozi  inspired by the Academy award-winning documentary Born into Brothels took place in Alexandra with local community members.
  In May 2008 a series of xenophobic attacks that took place throughout South Africa, started in Alexandra Township, due to a misdirected anxiety about belonging in a time of mounting corruption in the distribution of resources such as housing. Foreigners including Zimbabweans, Mozambicans, Congolese, and even some South Africans from the north living there were attacked.
caption: Children playing soccer
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