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Women, Gender and the Black Consciousness Movement (1968-1977)

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Women, Gender and the Black Consciousness Movement (1968-1977) COPYRIGHT AND CITATION CONSIDERATIONS FOR THIS THESIS/ DISSERTATION o Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. o NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. o ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. How to cite this thesis Surname, Initial(s). (2012). Title of the thesis or dissertation (Doctoral Thesis / Master’s Dissertation). Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/102000/0002 (Accessed: 22 August 2017). Women, Gender and the Black Consciousness Movement (1968-1977) by Sibusisiwe Nxongo 201149111 Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree MA (Historical Studies) in the Department of Historical Studies of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Johannesburg supervised by Dr. Nafisa Essop Sheik January 2019 ii Affidavit This serves to confirm that I, Sibusisiwe Nxongo, Student number 201149111 enrolled for the Qualification MA (Historical Studies) in the Faculty of Humanities herewith declare that my academic work is in line with the Plagiarism Policy of the University of Johannesburg, with which I am familiar. I further declare that the work presented in this dissertation is authentic and original unless clearly indicated otherwise, and in such instances full reference to the source is provided. I do not presume to receive any credit for such acknowledged quotations, and there is no copyright infringement in my work. I declare that no unethical research practices were used or material gained through dishonesty. I understand that plagiarism is a serious offence, and that should I contravene the Plagiarism Policy, notwithstanding signing this affidavit, I may be found guilty of a serious criminal offence (perjury). This would among other consequences compel the UJ to inform all other tertiary institutions of the offence and to issue a corresponding certificate of reprehensible academic conduct to whoever requests such a certificate from the institution. Signed at _____________________on this ___________day of _______________ 20___. Signature______________________________ Print name_____________________________ iii Acknowledgements To my mother, Olga Khabonina Nxongo, and brother, Gift Nxongo, thank you for always believing in me and supporting me in my academic journey. Thank you to my Supervisor, Dr Nafisa Essop Sheik, for agreeing to supervise me and for pushing me to reach heights I never imagined possible. Your constant guidance and feedback to my work has been invaluable. To my co-supervisor, Prof Natasha Erlank, for your encouragement and willingness to assist whenever I needed it. I thank both of you, and Stephen Sparks, for helping me secure funding for this project. And thanks to the Global Excellence Stature Scholarships for the much-needed funding. I acknowledge the archivists at the William Cullen Library, University of the Witwatersrand, for helping me carry out my primary research. Special thanks to Zofia Sulej for the friendly and very efficient assistance you gave me. And finally, to my peers, Phindi and Koena, thank you for the moral and emotional support. To Charmaine Hlongwane for being a source of inspiration. And to all my friends for reminding me to breathe when I needed it the most. You all made this journey enjoyable. iv Abstract This thesis explores the meaning and articulation of gender in the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM). This movement replaced the African National Congress (ANC) as the vanguard of the national liberation movement in 1968-1977. Studies of women’s roles in the national liberation movement have portrayed them mainly as auxiliary or significant ‘others.’ The ANC Women’s League and the Federation of South African Women have been used as a benchmark in analysing women’s resistance against Apartheid and have been regarded as the driving force behind the women’s liberation movement. However, the BCM provided an opportunity for women to participate in public politics as formal members. Women in the BCM not only redefined their identity as black people struggling against Apartheid, but also as black women living in oppressive patriarchal structures. This significantly challenged female domesticity and traditional gender norms in national politics. Women leaders in the BCM were given ‘honorary male’ status, which has undermined their agency in the formulation, implementation and practice of black consciousness philosophy. This thesis therefore investigates the articulations and meanings of gender in the BCM, how women struggled for gender equality within the movement and how this could have changed attitudes about masculinity and femininity within the BCM and the national liberation movement. The study explores the political experiences of women in the BCM using biographies and interviews, instead of focusing on organisational histories which tend to silence women’s voices. The study has found that women in the BCM asserted themselves as women in a seemingly masculinist environment, that the period between 1968-1977 was a crucial moment in which black women were empowered to actively oppose patriarchal norms which subordinated them in the national liberation movement. v Table of Contents Page number CHAPTER 1. ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 1.2. Literature Review ................................................................................................................ 4 1.2.1. Gender ‘struggles’ in the twentieth century............................................................. 4 1.2.2. Women’s political resistance in the mid-20th century ............................................ 8 1.2.3. Gender and the Black Consciousness Movement .................................................. 10 1.3. The making of a Black Consciousness generation: Education and professionalism the 1950s and 1960s ............................................................................................................................ 15 1.4. Chapter outline .................................................................................................................. 20 CHAPTER 2. BLACK WOMEN IN PROGRESSIVE ANTI-APARTHEID MOVEMENTS IN THE 1970S................................................................................................................................... 22 2.1. Black Consciousness ideas in ecumenical organisations ................................................ 22 2.1.1. White Liberalism and the Black Consciousness Movement ................................. 27 2.2. Ecumenicalism and Black community development ...................................................... 30 2.3. The Schlebusch investigation into the Wilgespruit Fellowship Centre ........................ 34 2.3.1. Racial tensions at Wilgespruit ............................................................................... 36 2.3.2. The Domestic Worker’s Project Investigated ........................................................ 37 CHAPTER 3. BLACK CONSCIOUSNESS WOMEN AND STUDENT ACTIVISM .............. 43 3.1. Politicisation in mission-schools ....................................................................................... 43 3.2. Politicisation in Urban Secondary Schools ...................................................................... 47 3.2.1. FRELIMO & the Black Consciousness Movement............................................... 50 3.2.2. From Youth groups to a Political Movement in Soweto ....................................... 52 3.3. Political Activism in Higher Education Institutions ....................................................... 56 3.3.1. From NUSAS to SASO; The birth of the Black Consciousness Movement in Natal ............................................................................................................................... 57 3.3.2. Class consciousness among students in the BCM ................................................. 61 CHAPTER 4. GENDER IN THE BLACK CONSCIOUSNESS MOVEMENT ........................ 68 4.1. The discursive exclusion of women in Black Consciousness literature ......................... 68 4.1.1. University Christian Movement and women’s liberation ...................................... 69 4.1.2. Gender and Black Theology .................................................................................. 71 4.1.3. The Women’s Group ............................................................................................. 74 4.2. Gender equality in the Black Consciousness Movement ................................................ 77 4.2.1. Black Consciousness women and the making of a new black identity ................. 82 4.2.2. Romantic relationships in the Black Consciousness Movement ........................... 86 CHAPTER 5. THE BLACK COMMUNITY PROGRAMMES (BCP’S) .................................. 90 5.1. Zanempilo: Black Consciousness women leading community development programs .. ............................................................................................................................................
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