Gertrude Shope, former president of the ANC Women’s League, is born

Gertrude Shope was born in Johannesburg, but grew up in Zimbabwe. She was trained as a teacher and went on to teach in Natal and Soweto. When she was 29 years old she decided to join the African National Congress (ANC) and soon afterwards left teaching as part of a campaign to boycott Bantu Education. In 1966 the ANC convinced her to leave South Africa and join her husband, Mark Shope, in exile. While in exile, Gertrude and her husband travelled frequently to lobby as representatives of the ANC. In 1991 Shope was elected president of the ANC’s Women’s League, a position she held until 1993. She worked together with Albertina Sisulu in convening the ANC’s Internal Leadership Corps Task Force from 1990-1991. In 1994 Shope became a member of parliament in the Government of National Unity.