Curated set · answers marked
What does the title Born a Crime refer to?
ATrevor Noah's father was arrested before he was born
BTrevor Noah's birth was illegal under apartheid South Africa's Immorality Act, which banned relationships between people of different races✓
CTrevor Noah was born in a prison where his mother was serving time
DTrevor Noah's mother was an undocumented immigrant when he was born
Rationale
Under apartheid law in South Africa, the Immorality Act classified sexual relations between people of different races as a crime. Since Trevor Noah's mother is Black (Xhosa) and his father is white (Swiss), his very existence was deemed a crime by the apartheid regime.
What does the title Born a Crime refer to?
ATrevor Noah was arrested as a child for stealing food.
BTrevor Noah's birth was considered a criminal act under apartheid law, as his mother (Black) and father (White/Swiss) came from different races, making interracial relationships illegal in South Africa at that time.✓
CTrevor Noah's mother was imprisoned for giving birth outside of marriage.
DTrevor Noah was born during a violent protest, and his birth certificate was forged.
Rationale
During South Africa's apartheid era, the Immorality Act prohibited interracial sex and relationships. Trevor Noah's very existence — born to a Black Xhosa mother and a white Swiss father — was thus a crime under the law, which highlights the central irony and meaning of the memoir's title.
What does the title Born a Crime refer to?
ATrevor Noah's early life as a street criminal in Johannesburg
BThe fact that Trevor Noah's birth was literally illegal under apartheid-era South African law, which prohibited relationships between people of different races✓
CTrevor Noah's mother being imprisoned for a crime before his birth
DA metaphor for the poverty Trevor Noah was born into During apartheid in South Africa, the Immorality Act made interracial relationships illegal. Since Trevor Noah's mother (a Black Xhosa woman) and his father (a white Swiss man) were not allowed to have a child together, Noah's very existence was deemed a criminal act.