Youth Day is dedicated to the memory of the student rebellion of 16 June 1976, a high watermark in pre-1994 struggles against Bantu Education. But our struggle neither began nor ended on this day when the police force of the supremacist state shot down protesting teenagers in Soweto. In this protracted struggle against minority rule, oppression and exploitation, many young activists paid the ultimate price for our freedom. Youth Day thus fittingly became a moment for tributes to many pre- and post-1976 generations of selfless young freedom fighters.
The Progressive Youth Movement (PYM) joined forces with a handful of other organisations for an inspiring and memorable June 16 public meeting. It took place at a small Community Hall across the road from the Khayelitsha sports stadium, in a neighbourhood simply known as Section 2. The hall was obviously too small for the crowd fluctuating between 200-250 people. Dozens assembled outside the two entrances to hear the electrifying speeches or to catch a glimpse of awesome cultural items delivered from a poorly lit stage. Some came by minibus taxi from townships, like Delft and Philippi, while others were from as far afield as Robertson, a rural town which is about 130 km northeast of Cape Town city. The event attracted a mix of school-going and unemployed youth plus some older activists. Students from surrounding high-schools made up about two-thirds of those in attendance.
In an impassioned speech a student at Philippi High school explained how Grade 12 students receive lessons in refurbished containers that have been serving as makeshift classrooms for several years. He blamed both the Western Cape and National Departments of Education for failing to provide critical infrastructure and other fundamentals that are the cornerstones of free and equal education for all. A college student spoke from the audience and turned the spotlight on the school curriculum. After all, top quality schooling demands far more than enough classrooms and textbooks. He questioned government’s commitment to invest in quality education for all, relating a story of his own bitter experience. Even though he had passed Grade 12, he did so without mathematics which was a requirement for him to pursue post-school studies. During his time at high-school, nothing was done to assist them to master mathematics and inculcate a full appreciation of the future benefits of what he described as an essential subject. Before he could enter college, he had to pay a considerable amount of money just to complete Grade 12 mathematics. Government’s flawed neoliberal model of schooling, he concluded, is to blame for this situation. It condemns working class children to impoverishment because the quality of education a child receives depends on whether parents are able to pay for a child’s education. It runs counter to the demand for free and equal education for all. It deserves outright rejection as a solution to the enduring crisis in education. This explosive take-home message sparked resounding applause from the audience.
As to be expected, intense political debates characterized the meeting but the agenda also included short yet politically enlightening cultural items. Students from Chris Hani High School, located in Khayelitsha, performed a play with a powerful political message. After reciting two poems, one of the three students from Alexander Sinton High School based in Athlone sang a popular freedom song with the audience joining him in singing the chorus. Mobilization for this 2014 Youth Day public meeting included a march for decent services and jobs to the provincial legislator in Cape Town city on 13 June. PYM used this protest action to reach out to some of these schools through left-activist teachers and groups like Sounds of the South (SOS), a cultural group with apparent Pan Africanist political leanings.
The Housing Assembly and Gugulethu Backyarders were the most prominent social movements that took part in this vibrant gathering. A representative from the Rita Edwards Women’s Collective, an organization of women activists with its stronghold in the Mowbray-Observatory suburb, delivered a brief solidarity message in which she cited one of Nelson Mandela’s speeches. The Democratic Left Front (DLF) Western Cape was the only explicitly political movement invited to speak. Youth resistance throughout history, the DLF speaker explained, often started large-scale rebellions against social injustices that would galvanize other social classes into struggle. It demonstrates the role youth can play in advancing social revolutions. There is a vital lesson from the past for present struggles: today’s young activists must unite their struggles with those of working people against the entire capitalist system.
Overall, this 2014 Youth Day meeting went beyond worthy tributes to the brave young activists of bygone years. It displayed the signs and raised the hopes of introducing radical left politics to a new generation of youth enraged and energized by their immediate problems. Laying the foundations for a militant anti-capitalist youth movement must be done. A luta continua!