We black South Africans can always find an excuse to party.
Not that there is anything wrong with that, but we also do it in situations that are not appropriate. A typical example is the “after tears” parties which are held after a funeral. How appropriate is that?
Nowadays, we celebrate the historical days in our calendar, instead of commemorating them. We celebrate Freedom Day, and rightly so. But how do you celebrate June 16 which marks the day when students were killed, injured and jailed for demonstrating against Afrikaans as a medium of instruction? This has contributed to the desecration of our historical days.
This year, June 16 (now Youth Day) marks 40 years. This historical day, on which student politics heightened, is widely celebrated, with the Soweto students who started the protest in mind, and the likes of Hector Petersen will be remembered.
That said, it is public knowledge that the 1976 student protests spread to other parts of the country. Kagiso also had its own student protest. And young protesters in the area suffered the same way as did those in Soweto. But the local version is not recognised.
Does that mean the 1976 Kagiso student protest was in vain? No, it was not. It’s a pity that those who participated in it are not recognised. In Soweto, the likes of Seth Mazibuko, who participated in the protest, are treated like heroes.
There is a pattern here. It is not only the Kagiso student protest that is not recognised – the Mshenguville Massacre is also overlooked. What does this say about us? That we don’t give a hoot about our local history? We really need some introspection, to ask ourselves hard questions about these issues, and find answers.
The cultural activist Thabo Matsafu is advocating for the 1976 Kagiso student protest to be commemorated on 17 June. The reason Matsafu cites is that the student protest in Kagiso happened on the 17th. I don’t know if his proposal will fly, but I doubt it.
You can rest assured that this letter won’t help much in terms of raising awareness about the 1976 Kagiso student protest either. But it’s not an entirely futile exercise. It’s up to us to fight for the recognition of the local version.
