The youth, heartbeat of humanity
On the 16th of June, South Africa commemorates the Soweto uprising of 1976. On this day, black South African students protested in the streets to protect their rights. Their peaceful march was met by fierce police violence. Recent events have shown that the reality of 1976 still echoes today.
The role of youth in History
Throughout history and in almost every society the concept of youth is intimately associated with the liveliest, and arguably greatest, of human qualities. It is often described as the prime of an individuals’ life; a time at which the motivation for success is comfortably paired with a willingness, energy and ability to achieve. Evidence of this is littered across the mythological pantheons of our ancient civilisations, with deities of beauty, vigour, confrontation and radical change echoing the vibrancy of youth aesthetic and culture. There is no doubt that our early ancestors would have relied heavily on the leadership and vitality from the youth among them, particularly considering the short life expectancies and harsh living conditions that our ancestors were marred with. Ironically, the efforts of our youthful ancestors to advance humanity have gradually resulted in a great reluctance to acknowledge serious youth leadership, an attitude that has become universal across the world in the 21st century. Thus, young people have found themselves frequently left out of the decision-making process, in contradiction to the foundation of humanity, due to the deeply entrenched belief that youth possess little wisdom. Despite this modern lack of political and social agency however, the overwhelming potential and passion that young people possess continues to remain a formidable force amongst us.
Young people have historically been expected to fulfil strenuous, distressing and oftentimes life-threatening roles in society as humanity has experienced the frontline of ongoing cycles of warfare, revolution and progress, whether socially or technologically. Where systematic oppression and exclusion has occurred and continues to this day, youth that have been historically disadvantaged are expected to bear a disproportionate burden. Where such systematic structures exist in socioeconomically stable societies, historically disadvantaged youth find themselves significantly more vulnerable to economic and social exclusion. Often this involves developing a dependence on either survivalist strategies or welfare support; susceptibility to the influence of crime and finally; untreated mental health concerns arising from normalised microaggressions and trauma (Johnson, et al, 2000; Majavu, 2020). Where structures of systematic oppression exist in the absence of socioeconomic stability, or where economic stability is dependent on the subjugation of othered population groups, these vulnerabilities are magnified.
Systematic structures that are designed to oppress and exclude have, however, rarely managed to silence the voices of the young who are affected the worst. The intensity and commitment of youth rebellion has led to the toppling of many structures of injustice across the world and throughout history. During Youth month, South Africans fondly remember the bravery and selflessness of thousands of youth who stood in defiance of the overwhelming and barbaric Apartheid regime, many becoming martyrs. At a time when the primary resistance groups against the Apartheid regimes were banned, with leadership in either exile, prison or house-arrest, we remember how the youth took up the mantle of resistance. The celebration of Youth day is a testament to the agency, awareness and wisdom that young South Africans have shown in opposing outright injustices & systematic oppression.
“The most dangerous black man is an educated black man” is a quote attributed to a variety of black thought leaders, a quote that defines how oppressive regimes have sought to control and police their oppressed. On the 16th of June, South Africa commemorates the Soweto uprising that took place in 1976, when the youth sought to dismantle policies of control. On this day, an estimated number of 20 000 black South African students protested in the streets of Soweto against a new decree in the Bantu Education Act forcing secondary schools to use Afrikaans and English as mandatory teaching languages.
A brief perspective of education under apartheid
Enacted in 1953, the rationale behind the Bantu Education Act was to provide a curriculum that would fit “the nature and requirements of the black people.” According to Hendrick Verwoerd, the man known as the “Architect of Apartheid”, there was no point in providing equal access to education to white and black students as the latter would only be eligible for restricted forms of labour anyways. As he even stated: “Natives [blacks] must be taught from an early age that equality with Europeans [whites] is not for them.” It is widely understood that education is one of the most important tools to access a better life. To make sure this would not happen to black students, the government neglects the infrastructures dedicated to them. Facilities are severely lacking. Classes are overcrowded. There are few teachers, many of whom are underqualified, and not enough school books. Regarding public spending on education, the minority of white schools receives about the same amount of funds as the vast majority of black schools (Udogu, 1999).
It is in this context that the Afrikaans Medium decree was voted in 1974. From then on, Afrikaans would be used for mathematics, arithmetic, history and geography. General sciences and practical subjects such as home craft or needlework would be taught in English (Mxolisi Ndlovu, 1998). Indigenous languages would only be spoken in religion, music and sports classes. Afrikaans was deeply associated with the apartheid regime. To impose Afrikaans on black students was seen as yet another act of oppression to form an Afrikaner hegemony and undermine local African identities.
The 70s saw a growing politicisation of the South African black youth. The apartheid regime was showing its economic limits as the inflation and the unemployment rate amongst black citizens was growing. Politically, the liberation of some neighbouring countries was echoing within the oppressed people of South Africa (Habib, 2005). As black students became increasingly uneasy with the inability of the white-led National Union of South African Students to tackle racist structures, they gathered around Steve Biko and created the South African Student Organisation (SASO). Biko’s philosophy, known as Black Consciousness, was to urge all people of colour (not just black South Africans) to work towards their liberation and create “a pride in being black, and develop the self-confidence to determine their own future.” Alongside with the domestic economic tensions and liberation of some regimes in Southern Africa, the Black Consciousness Movement “gave students an appreciation for themselves as black people and helped politicize students.”
Back to the events of the 16th of June 1976
Under the influence of Biko’s philosophy, the South African Students Movement (SASM) — a syndicate for black high-school students — passed a resolution in May 1976 “against the use of Afrikaans and expressed support for students boycotting classes“ to condemn the racially separated education system (Mxolisi Ndlovu, 1998). Together with SASO, it is believed that SASM organised the protest that took place on the 16th of June.
The peaceful march was meant to culminate at a rally in Orlando stadium. However, the students met fierce opposition from the police as they were on their way to the meeting place. Tear gas and live ammunition were fired. According to official numbers, 176 students were killed by the police that day. Some reports estimate the number to rise up to 700. 1228 protesters were injured and 1298 “were arrested for offences ranging from attending illegal meetings, arson to terrorism and furthering the aims of banned organizations.” The police’s violence resulted in a widespread revolt of the youth across the country.
How the youth maintain their role today
The role of youth as change-makers, revolutionaries and watchdogs for the values of humanity has proven essential for dragging humanity forward on systemic problems across the globe. The spirit of resistance against injustice remains, echoing the bravery, passion and determination shown by the heroes of the Soweto Uprising, and countless others that have stood up and lost their lives for a better future for all of human society. The sheer potential for the youth to drive change in the right direction has never been greater than it is today because of advancements in mobile technology. Young people are in a unique position to leverage off of these technological resources to mobilise large groups of people behind a cause for systemic change. The Arab Spring protests that occurred at the beginning of the previous decade, was primarily made possible through the use of online social media platforms for the spread of information and organisation. What began as a youth movement in Tunisia, due to general dissatisfaction with an oppressive political and social climate, in addition to economic difficulties, quickly spread across the Middle East through the use of Twitter. In 2016 South African youth across the country rallied behind the hashtag #FeesMustFall, in opposition to increasingly unaffordable tuition prices, historical debt and lacklustre education quality at all levels. The #NeverAgain protest was organised in a similar fashion by American highschoolers, in direct response to the increasing frequency and severity of school shootings in the country with an urgent plea to reassess existing gun control legislation. This Youth day our world is once again in the throes of youth rebellion. Young people across the world from different nations, ethnic groups, cultures, races, political affiliations & religious creeds stand in familiar defiance against the systematic structures of racism, discrimination and oppression; systematic structures that no longer have a place in our world. On this Youth day let us remember that black lives matter; let us remember that these three words run much deeper than the murder & martyrdom of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmad Aubrey and countless others that have lost their lives to the same systematic injustice. Let us not forget that Youth Day marks the death of a young black man, Hector Pieterson, and the many others who stood and fell alongside him at the hands of police who were systematically operating on behalf of an oppressive regime.
This article was written with Liam Smith, Vollar’s chief of operations and research.
Sources
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