South Afica Celebrates Youth Day

The day is probably more remembered for the untimely, and unnecessary, death of 12 year-old Hector Pieterson (1964 – 16 June 1976) than it is for the 551 students who died during the Soweto upraising. It is more remembered as a reaction against the Nationalist Government’s intention to make Afrikaans the compulsory teaching medium than it is for the hundreds of thousands of students who demonstrated countrywide.

Thousands of students (many younger than 12) who were jailed, beaten, sodomised and raped after the event as the authorities attempted to root out ANC activists hiding in the communities.

June 16th is a time for remembering Antoinette's story; it is a time for celebrating the passion, inspiration and enthusiasm that many of our youth demonstrate as they cross our racial divide; it is time for reflecting on our achievements over the past 10 years, and most importantly, it is time for reminding ourselves of the challenges we face in building our democracy during the next 10 years.

Source: www.sagoodnews.co.za

Further Reading: Hector Pieterson, Soweto upraising, South Africa under Apartheid