Freedom fighter Charlotte Maxeke remembered in Soweto
She championed issues of voting rights for women and led discussions on carrying of passes for black women.
Liberation heroin, Charlotte Maxeke who would have turned 152 years on Friday, April 7 was celebrated by the Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation in partnership with the Charlotte Mannye-Maxeke Institute with a wreath laying ceremony and church service on the eve of her birthday in Soweto.
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The events celebrated Maxeke’s legacy under the theme ‘Education First’ in honour of the icon’s advocacy for education and championing calls for the emancipation of black people.
Mannya Maxeke was the first black woman in South Africa to graduate with a Bachelor of Science (B.sc) degree in the USA.
The Charlotte Mannya-Maxeke Institute was founded by members of the Mannya, Maxeke and Makhanya families seven years ago.
“We are here to celebrate the birth date of Maxeke like we normally do every year.
“We feel her values are now able to be shared with South Africans, especially the people of Kliptown in particular.
“We are happy that a lot of South Africans are beginning to identify with the name Charlotte Maxeke as a person who contributed immensely to this country and shared in improving the lives of other people and her community,” Max Maxeke, representative of the institute said.
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Maxeke is among the icons that paved a way for the liberation of black people during the colonial years.
Chairperson of the ANC Women’s League in the province, Faith Mazibuko hailed her as a fearless leader who advocated for social equality and women’s rights.
“She laid a foundation, she was a campaigner of women’s rights and she’s the one who assisted women in all corners of South Africa to be able to know that they have rights and responsibilities. Even those that were unjustifiably discriminated must be assisted. She was the one to break down the doors of patriarchy, even in the same ANC that we have today, she shaped it.”
Mazibuko said South Africans especially young girls and women needed to take a page from Maxeke’s life, adding that the pioneer’s legacy was paramount and needed to be preserved.
“It is up to us the younger generation to take over that spear and continue the work she did.
“People must know there have been women who participated in the liberation struggle who made sure that women’s rights are human rights,” Mazibuko added.
The burial site of Maxeke is considered a heritage site and was upgraded by the department and the South African Heritage Council (SAHC).
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She is one of the women who formed the Bantu Women’s League (BWL) in 1918, which later became the ANC Women’s League.
There she championed issues of voting rights for women and led discussions on carrying of passes for black women.
Thursday’s commemoration started with a prayer service at Maxeke’s former home in Kliptown which was followed by the wreath laying at the Nancefield Cemetery.
Proceedings concluded with a church service at the A.M.E Church in Diepkloof.
