IIE MSA Bachelor of Commerce in Law shares her thoughts on Youth Day
Mmusi Maimane once said, “We should use Youth Day to reflect as a country on where we are, where we should be and how we should get there. Though Youth Day is a turning point for South Africa, we should be reflecting as a country on where we are headed.”
IIE MSA Bachelor of Commerce in Law student, Lesego Leroke, writes:
“June 16. A day of remembrance and sacrifice for the youth of South Africa.
It is a day of recognising and honouring those who passed on that day in 1976 and forever changed the course of history in our country. Triggered by and traced back to the policies placed by the apartheid government in the Bantu Education Act of 1953, Afrikaans was made compulsory in schools, therefore, resulting in the beginning of the uprising. The uprising is a day cemented in South Africa as a struggle against apartheid.
Black students and teachers did not speak Afrikaans and was seen as a language of oppression towards black people. This fueled the frustration of students, and a meeting was held in the township of Soweto to hold a protest march to a stadium to rally. During the rally, students urged the government to keep Afrikaans out of the schools as part of a peaceful protest.
Thousands of children and students marched, and the crowd was dispersed by armed police, who opened fire on the students. Hundreds of students were killed by the police after the protest turned into an uprising against the apartheid government.
Among the first victims were 15-year-old Hastings Ndlovu and 12-year-old Hector Pieterson. In addition, we remember Tsietsi Mashinini, who led the march. Mashinini was president of the Soweto Students Representative Council at the time the peaceful march was agreed upon. A photograph of Hector Pieterson as the wounded child was published in newspapers worldwide and became a symbol of the uprising.
Even though several young people lost their lives in 1976, they fought for inclusivity. Though lives are different now compared to that of those in 1976, their contributions should not be devalued in their hand in shaping a new society. The uprising set a path for the coming gene-rations hoping for better opportunities and equality. However, today’s youth are still battling for equal opportunities as the employment rate continues to rise.
The longer the hold and decisions of the government over this country continue to decline, the longer youths will fall into a slump. We are seen as ‘the future of tomorrow’, but really is there a future for most of us?
Mmusi Maimane once said, “We should use Youth Day to reflect as a country on where we are, where we should be and how we should get there. Though Youth Day is a turning point for South Africa, we should be reflecting as a country on where we are headed.”
