Following its successful run at the Southwark Playhouse, Strike! will tour Britain and Ireland next year. Strike! tells the story of the Dublin shopworkers who refused to sell South African fruit in 1984. Venues will include Coventry, Poole, Liverpool and Newcastle and the tour will end in Dublin on 19 July 2024, the fortieth anniversary of the strike. You can contribute to the tour fund appeal here.
A new seven-part podcast series covers the history of apartheid in South Africa and the global anti-apartheid movement. Commissioned by the AAM Legacy Centre of Memory and Learning project, the series accompanies Edexcel's A-Level History specification, and is designed to be accessible to a wide audience. The podcasts reach back to the history of pre-settler colonialism and forward to an examination of the legacy of apartheid today. You can listen to them by clicking here
The project to set up a new Centre of Memory and Learning in the former ANC London office at 28 Penton Street, Islington has taken a big step forward with the award of a £1.2 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The Centre will showcase anti-apartheid campaigning to stimulate action against injustice, racism and inequality. The project already has an exciting programme of events and commissions. The new building is scheduled to open in 2024. To find out more click here.
Remembering Hanef Bhamjee, Chair of Wales AAM, who died on 9 January. Hanef resisted apartheid in South Africa from the age of 11 and helped found Wales AAM in 1981. He was a driving force in mobilising the people of Wales in the fight againt apartheid. You can read Wales Assembly member Mick Antoniw's tribute to Hanef in the Senedd here
The Mitting Inquiry into Undercover Policing has revealed how the British police spied extensively on the AAM, Stop the Seventy Tour and other anti-apartheid groups. Documents reveal how undercover officers attended AGMs and infiltrated private meetings. You can read summaries of some of the evidence here
The Scottish Centre for Global History at the University of Dundee is running a four-part podcast series on the history of the Anti-Apartheid Movement. SCGH editor Paul Feeney talks about how the AAM grew from small beginnings in the 1960s into one of the biggest social movements of the 20th century with historians Matt Graham and Chris Fevre. The podcasts also discuss the legacy of anti-apartheid campaigning and its relevance to contemporary movements for social change. You can listen to the podcasts here.
The project to set up a new Centre of Memory Learning in the former ANC London office at 28 Penton Street, Islington has taken a big step forward with the award of a £250,000 Heritage Lottery Fund development grant. The Centre will showcase anti-apartheid campaigning to stimulate action against injustice, racism and inequality. Watch this space for news of ongoing activities.
Pitch Battles: Sport, Racism and Resistance by Peter Hain and Andre Odendaal tells how apartheid South Africa was thrown out of world sport. Watch the book launch organised by Swansea Stand Up to Racism to hear how the campaign against the 1969-70 Springbok rugby and cricket tours is still relevant to today’s fight against racism in sport. Pitch Battles is published by Rowman & Littlefield International and is available from all good booksellers.
A fascinating new film, The Blindside, tells the story of Cape Town students who took direct action against the British Lions rugby game against the Springboks at Newlands stadium in 1974.
The Welsh People’s History Society, Llafur, recently held a roundtable event on the Wales Anti-Apartheid Movement. Hanef Bhamjee, Mick Antoniw, Hywel Francis, Mair Francis and Gaynor Legall shared their memories and sparked a discussion that explored the origins, development and wider historical and cultural impact of anti-apartheid campaigning in Wales. The session was introduced by Morwenna Osmond. It was one of a fascinating series focusing on race and identity in Wales. You can listen to the session here.
A new project has been launched at Nottingham University to trace anti-apartheid activists in Nottingham and record their stories. The project will also collect local photos, leaflets and other anti-apartheid publicity materials and deposit them in local archives for future generations. An exhibition of the new material will be shown at Nottingham Central Library, as soon as the Covid pandemic situation allows. Later it will move to St Ann’s library and tour selected county libraries. You can read more about the project here.