Skip to main content
Menu

Unrests break out in the Coloured townships

A school child re-enacts a scene from the school boycotts Source: www.joburg.org.za
Unrests broke out in the Coloured townships south-west of Johannesburg. This was preceded in April by the Coloured schools' boycott which began as a result of students' dissatisfaction with the South African educational and political systems. Students from about sixty Coloured high schools, teacher training facilities and the University of the Western Cape joined the protest and refused to attend classes. A number of Indian schools in Pretoria and KwaZulu-Natal joined the boycott. Black Consciousness groups also pledged their support. In Lenasia, the Parents’ Action Committee was established to provide political and legal support, since detentions of students and community leaders were prevalent during that time.