The Roman Catholic Church decided in principle to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils. Legal questions relating to this were going to be discussed with the government. Three months later, more than 20 000 learners from Soweto marched against the use of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction in Black secondary schools. The uprising then escalated into a nation-wide revolt, revitalising the struggle for liberation in South Africa.
20 March 1976
The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils

- Updated
- 30 Sep 2019

How we know this
- 01Nelson Mandela Foundation,"20 March 1976",From: Nelson Mandela Foundation,[Online],Available at: www.nelsonmandela.org,[Accessed on: 14 March 2014]
- 02O’Malley, P. ‘1977’, From: Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory, [online], available, at www.nelsonmandela.org.za (Accessed: 14 February 2013)
Last updated · 30 Sep 2019
South African History Online. (2013, March 14). The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095289
South African History Online (2013) 'The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils', South African History Online, 14 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095289 (Accessed: 22 October 2026).
South African History Online, The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095289, (accessed 22 October 2026).
"The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils." South African History Online, 14 Mar. 2013, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095289. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.
South African History Online. "The Roman Catholic Church decides, in principle, to open its 192 all-white schools to black pupils." South African History Online. March 14, 2013. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095289.
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