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ArticleAn Introduction to Sophiatown
In 1899, an investor named Herman Tobiansky envisaged a pleasant white suburb that could be developed on a site to the West of Johannesburg. It was some way…
Black South African Poets of the 1970’s and their Publications
Poet Critical Writings and Interviews Publications Date Keorapetsi Kgositsile The word is Here: Poetry from Modern…
ArticleHarriet and the Bolton Hall Four
The “Bolton Hall Four” David Davis, David Hemson, Jeannette Cunningham-Brown and Halton Cheadle were banned for five years under the Suppression of Communism…
ArticleWomen in the Cities and the Resistance Movement
The Heritage Museum at Villa Zain by Joline Young
“People who come here say how alive this place is. They say they actually feel the vibration of the rich history that fills these walls. I have given 19 years…
ArticleMusic and culture as forms of resistance
Music Music was a central feature of the urban culture that developed in Johannesburg and in Sophiatown in particular. It was here that the most important…
Student Politics in the Era of Democracy
During the 1990-1994 period of political liberalisation and negotiations leading to the first democratic elections the South African Students Organisation …
ArticlePseudo-scientific racism and Social Darwinism
Before learning about Social Darwinism, it is important to understand Darwinism. Here is a brief summary, but you can read more in the section in Grade 7 Human…
ArticlePassive Resistance Campaign Timeline
1906 11 September, A mass meeting of Indians took place at the Empire Theatre in Johannesburg in connection with the agitation at present going on in the…
ArticleAfrican National Congress Timeline 1930-1939
During this period the ANC cooperated with other organisations such as the APO and the NIC to fight increasing segregation imposed by the white minority…
Grade 10 Archive
This archive features classroom material that is no longer required in the curriculum. The Slave Trade: One of the most controversial issues regarding…
ArticlePrevention/Treatment
How is the South African Government dealing with the aids epidemic? In 1987, the apartheid government recognized that HIV and AIDS had the potential to…
ArticleThe Padavatan Six and the 1917 Natal Floods
On 28 October 1917 more than 400 market gardeners from the Springfield Flats (Tintown) area in Durban, Natal (now Kwazulu-Natal) drowned when the banks of the…
ArticleAngolan Civil War (1975-2002): A Timeline of Events
1961 FNLA and MPLA begin a guerrilla campaign to overthrow Portuguese colonial rule. 25 April 1974 Portuguese colonial rule ends after a coup removes…
ArticleThe missionaries
Missionaries arrived in Pondoland in 1830 when Faku, the ruler of the Mpondo Kingdom from 1818 to 1867, allowed Wesleyan missionaries to establish a mission…
ArticleDifferences between Capitalism & Communism and why did it start in Russia?
Please note that this information was part of our old 'history classroom content' written in 2003, we have updated is slightly to meet the needs of the new…
The Many Faces of Apartheid Repression
The content of this article was taken from the book A Crime Against Humanity - Analysing the Repression of the Apartheid State edited by Max Coleman, (Cape…
ArticleYusuf Dadoo Timeline: 1950 - 1959
Yusuf Dadoo Timeline: 1950 - 1959 1950 January 6-8, The Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) holds its last legal conference in Johannesburg prior to…
Khoisan Identity
In his State of the Nation address on 9th February 2012, President Zuma uttered a promise that provisions would be made ‘for the recognition of the Khoi-San…
Liberation organisations
UDF The United Democratic Front (UDF) was a non-racial alliance of about 400 national, regional and local organisations. It was launched in Cape Town in 1983,…
Prejudice, Politics and Patriarchy: The Social Decline and Changing Identity of David Lurie in J. M. Coetzee’s Disgrace by Charley-Ann Pearson
Prejudice, Politics and Patriarchy: The Social Decline and Changing Identity of David Lurie in J. M. Coetzee’s Disgrace Charley-Ann Pearson Politics and…
ArticleThe Empire of Mali (1230-1600)
The Empire of Mali was one of the largest empires in West African History, and at its height, it spanned from the Atlantic Coast to central parts of the Sahara…
ArticleSophiatown in Literature
An Invaluable Historical Source The literature on "life in Sophiatown" by a generation of prose writers, novelists, playwrights and poets is recognized as…
The Children’s Charter
Children’s rights and responsibilities In any society, it is very important that children are protected and cared for. Children are vulnerable members of…
From Segregation to Apartheid
The gains achieved by the White minority in the first four decades of the 20th century were, by the 1940s, increasingly under threat however, as African…
ArticleGangsterism in Sophiatown
Gangsterism is often characterized as anti-social behaviour frowned upon by polite sections of society. There is no doubt that the behaviour of gangsters like…
Black Concentration Camps during the Anglo-Boer War 2, 1900-1902
While the two main forces in the Anglo-Boer War 2 were White, it was not an exclusively White war. At least 15 000 Blacks were used as combatants by the…
ArticleThe African Mine workers strike of 1946
Introduction The strike by some 76,000 black miners in 1946 was one of the most significant examples of industrial action by black workers in South Africa…
ArticleThe 52nd ANC National Conference - Polokwane 2007
The 52nd African National Congress (ANC) National Conference took place from 16 – 20 December 2007 at the University of Limpopo in Polokwane. This conference…
Online directory - archives and media sources
National Archives The government archives service in South Africa houses and preserves the state records and other documents that have been collected since…