Address by Speaker Baleka Mbete (MP) on the occasion of the Commemoration Lecture on Charlotte Manye-Maxeke at the Middledrift Multi-Purpose Centre
Programme Director,
The Family of Charlotte Manye-Maxeke,
MEC for Social Development Sihlwayi,
His Excellency the Mayor,
Councillors,
Vice Chancellor Tom,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen.
Good Afternoon.
I am very honoured to be part of today’s proceedings that honours Charlotte Manye- Maxeke, as our leader, and underscores her legacy as a pioneer who helped to shape our nation’s course.
I take this opportunity to thank the Provincial Government, in particular the MEC, as well as the Mayor and the leadership of Fort Hare for hosting this seminal event.
We are privileged and strengthened that today, we have in our midst the Manye and Maxeke family.
Charlotte Manye-Maxeke was an exceptional woman, whose very action was expressive of her extraordinary intellect, determination, courage, dedication to the highest ideals, principles and love of God.
She is known as the first black woman from South Africa to hold a graduate degree. This great leader was not content to rest within the relative comfort of an academic career. She knew that her education had to be used in service to her people, who deserved nothing less than genuine freedom, including the freedom from ignorance, freedom from want, freedom from oppression, indignity and loss of self-respect.
It is fitting that we hold this event in the same month we celebrate the centenary of Fort Hare, the home of many of our country and continent’s inspirational leaders, Kaunda, Nyerere, Mandela, Tambo, ZK Mathews, Seretse Khama, and many more.
The establishment of Fort Hare in 1906, was in response to the absence of a higher education institution for Africans and the exclusion of Africans from the union of South Africa. Indeed, the formation of this institution signifies the political unification of Africans through the formation of the African National Congress.
This institution carries the distinct honour of being the fertile ground, where the standards of public life were set by the minds and souls of giants of our struggle who were preoccupied with truly lasting values. These values were the search for truth through reasoned argument and debate, the pursuance of good through deeds and not merely words.
This parallel development is continued today, as Fort Hare marches forward as one of the institutions that continues to play a significant role in the reconstruction and development of democratic South Africa.
In the eloquent words of the past president of the African National Congress, OR Tambo an alumnus of this university and past Vice Chancellor: “What enabled the student body, which was renewed each year, to make sense of its life, was the motto of our college: “In your light, let us see light".
Seeing the light instead of darkness in our people’s eyes is indeed part of the ongoing project to quote the Constitution: “To improve the quality of life of all our people and free the potential of each person”.
Programme Director,
I do wish to add, however, that any organisation that reaches 100 years and beyond, deserves our attention. We must make sure to allocate the necessary resources so that we are able to extract lessons, strategies and values that are worth emulating, in society.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Intellectual
Charlotte Manye-Maxeke merits a place in the annals of history for her ideological contributions, or what is popularly called “the battle of ideas”. She was unquestionably among the early intellectuals in the ANC in the 1920’s and 1930’s.
Her work forms part of the critical scholarship on gender, class and racial relations in South Africa. Thus her contribution as an intellectual to the opposition of various forms of injustice, with consequences for the 20th century political landscape cannot be undervalued.
Her bold critique of the shortcomings in the intellectual project of African intellectuals of the 20th century demonstrates her familiarity and participation in the political debates of the time.
In contrast to the state’s position on the African urban population, she disrupted the state’s discourse of the Native Question. Her participation in various conferences held on various aspects of the Native Question did not only raise questions but proposed possible solutions to the problems of the day.
I refer specifically to her expansion of public discourse beyond the areas that were officially designated as aspects of Native Life in South Africa. Her contributions questioned the uncritical translation into the modern world of the notions of urban-rural, men-women, civilised-uncivilised. Her theorisation of the everyday realities of Africans and women in particular contributed to a critical discourse of social transformation where these contradictions did not rest in a timeless past, but played their part in the shaping of new relations in societies in transition.
his narrative is found in the documents of Charlotte Maxeke in what she viewed as the “elimination of the Bantu woman as a factor”, she drew gender inequality closer to the debate about the Native Question in South Africa.
Therefore the contribution of Charlotte Maxeke cannot be reduced to a biographical account, or a timeline approach. Too often, women, including Charlotte Maxeke’s role in the rise of black politics is limited to a secondary status in which women are perceived as a support structure of the struggle.
We must take care to reflect our history with more foresight and deeper analysis, especially in relation to the contributions of women. This is a challenge which I wish to put out there, especially to the University of Fort Hare where the ANC archives are held.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Memory Project
In an endeavour to bring to life the contributions of icons such as Charlotte Maxeke’s and others, Parliament launched the Memory Project, in September last year. This was done in order to remember, honour and place in the public domain, the contributions of women in South Africa. Women who have made a positive contribution to nation building and society at large.
The Memory Project acknowledges women from across political and social spectrums that, through their values and principles, have contributed to social, economic and political transformation in South Africa. These kinds of initiatives are much needed as we continue to fight patriarchy in society.
We consciously choose September as we wanted to signal that the time has come for us to move away from compacting the contribution of women into Women’s Month which is August.
Programme Director,
Charlotte Maxeke was a dynamic and complex woman, whose lasting influence is found in the many spheres in which she was active. Her ascension to political prominence could be attributed to her active involvement in various spheres of society. She was a woman who took on multiple roles as a teacher, a religious leader, community leader, a social worker, an intellectual, a daughter, a wife and a mother.
Her life’s work is an important lesson to all of us, and a reminder that there is always something that we can do. It is always within our power to make a difference wherever we may find ourselves at a given time. As you did, today, when you participated in the silent march to the local police station to record your dissatisfaction with the high levels of gender violence prevalent in the community.
She was a Revolutionary. She understood that the role of women was essential to the success of the revolution. She argued very eloquently that through organisation and I quote: “Women must be made conscious of the political connection between, our demands and their own suffering, needs and wishes, complete equality with men in law and practice, in the family, the state and in society”.
Thus we see, that she was a fierce opponent of the dompas for black women and men, and helped to organize the anti-pass movement in Bloemfontein in 1913. As leader of this organisation, she led a delegation to Prime Minister Louis Botha to discuss the issue of passes for women, and this was followed up by protest the following year. These women continued to protest for respect, for freedom, driven by a solemn determination to affirm their God–given dignity.
What we learn from Charlotte Maxeke’s activism is her ability to draw vital connections between history and the every day. This connection must continue to inform our activism and our political consciousness today. Our present day activism about housing for example must be informed by an understanding of our countries history - Africans were dispossessed of their land. The majority of our people, and let me be clear, the majority of Africans continue to live under the devastation of the Land Act of 1913. Charlotte was able to make this connection - are we politically conscious to make this connection?
Ladies and gentlemen,
Charlotte Maxeke was a pioneer, a woman who was not afraid to enter “traditional male spaces” and challenge the status quo. One such example we see in July 1912, when the workers met in Bloemfontein to establish a union for skilled and unskilled workers, she addressed the conference and sensitised the delegates about the need to promote the rights of women.
As a result at the close of deliberations the delegates resolved that: “the time has come to admit women in the Worker’s Union as full members, and that they should be allowed to receive all the same rights as male members, and there should be female representatives in our conference. Further, that women workers receive equal pay, men and women for the same work done.”
Her influence on strategies for labour bargaining by African labourers was apparent through her involvement in the Labour Movement. In this regard, she was also involved in protests on the Witwatersrand concerning the human rights and low wages of workers.
We see throughout, that she was constantly seeking solutions. To actively address the human rights of workers, she set up the first employment agency for Africans in Johannesburg and participated in the formation of the Industrial and Commercial Workers’ Union (ICWU) in 1920.
Her own articulations of “the promotion of women’s rights crafted a space for a discourse which cut across race, class and gender barriers. We see this discourse evident in the Labour Movement today.
Programme Director,
Charlotte Maxeke was a charismatic and dynamic leader. Her work as the president of the Bantu Women’s League in 1918 presents an interesting turn in the nationalist narration on women and the struggle for liberation. At this time women in the African National Congress only held membership without voting rights. During her presidency, the Bantu Women’s League led the anti-pass campaign which became one of the most celebrated in the history of the liberation struggle of South Africa.
In this environment she developed the women’s league into a credible opposition in its own right. Her active participation in public debates and her ability to unpack difficult issues earned her the credible reputation as a leader. This was evident in her contributions to public debates and her deliberations on matters that affected Africans. In Charlotte Maxeke the Bantu Women’s League had a leader of national standing, a leader who was capable of dealing with legislators, chiefs, officials, and ordinary people.
She was a facilitator of racial relations across the racial spectrum.
She recognised that though white women were privileged, patriarchy affected all women in some way or the other. Thus we see her working across the racial divide of the time. In 1921 she was invited to address the Women’s Enfranchisement Association of the Union (WEAU), an organisation that advocated for the voting rights of white women in South Africa. On this occasion she advocated the view that the “personal is political” - meaning that women’s experiences were increasingly drawn into the political discourse of the time. This was in relation to her understanding of African women as a marginalised group which was made invisible through interconnected racialised gendered oppression.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Charlotte Maxeke embodies the struggle of a modern woman in her engagements with traditional structures to negotiate western modes of life into a traditional rural society.
Writing in his publication “What a Girl Can Do” AB Xuma past president of the ANC notes that her meaningful engagement with men in the chiefs council was “due to her mastery of the customs and this earned her an affectionate appellation in the council “Nogazo.”
This is especially evident during her stay in Ramokgopa Village. Despite the challenges posed by the traditional protocols at Ramokgopa, she laid a strong foundation for Christianity to grow by establishing a community school in the village. It is widely acknowledged that the chief’s progressive stance towards education was as a result of her stay in the village. She was also one of the few women whose voice was heard and who had an influence in the council of Dalindyebo, Parmount Chief of the abaThembu at Idutywa.
We know from her work, that she saw education for Africans as a vehicle to liberation. It was her sense of leadership that led Charlotte to respond to a call by the South African Ministry of Education to testify before several government commissions in Johannesburg on matters concerning African education, a first for an African of any gender.
Initiating a discussion about the quality of the education acquired in missionary educational facilities, she highlighted the tension in the value exchange between the literate and illiterate among the Africans. In this sphere, she highlighted inequalities in the provision of education as follows: “Parents released boys and sent them wholesale away to advanced institutions, while some restraint had been placed against educating women who were to be given away for dowry in future as the custom had not died out even at the present day.”
Her clear brilliance resulted in a number of job offers, again the first of their kind made by the white government to an African. As then, today in many instances, women in traditional society face similar challenges and are expected to straddle traditional protocols with the “modern”. As Charlotte teaches us, we must continue to demand that the voices of women in traditional society, be heard.
Programme Director,
Charlotte Maxeke also believed that political work should embrace a great deal of educational work among men. This especially to garner an understanding amongst men of the home life of women as this was to use her words: “a daily sacrifice to a thousand unimportant trivialities”. If we are at all to make a difference and shatter patriarchy, we have to begin at home, with our sons, our husbands, our brothers. Changing mind-sets and attitudes begins at home, in personal spaces, as the “personal is political”.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Welfare Work
Charlotte Maxeke brought the realities of Africans and the indignity which they suffered to life through her work as a probation officer and social worker. Records uncovered shows and I quote her own words: “after deep deliberation”, she accepted the dual role of probation officer and court welfare officer to Johannesburg’s juvenile magistrate.
In this role her path was to cross in a most fortuitous way with a young man by the name of Hastings Walter Kamuzu Banda - later the President of Malawi. The young Banda was attempting to secure a passport to enable him to journey to the United States to take up an AME church scholarship at Wilberforce University. With the self-assurance and authority of solid personal experience, she asked the magistrate to approve his application. Widely known and highly respected by Africans and Europeans alike, her word carried great weight and the application was thus approved.
During her years in Johannesburg, she co-founded with her husband the Widow’s Home and the Foreign Missionary Society. Along with the AME Church’s Widow’s Mite Society, these two groups were responsible for funding and educating thousands of young Africans, many in the United States and Britain, and also for caring for sick and indigent Africans at home.
On the question of young girls in urban centres, she suggested that industrial schools and better accommodation be established and made available to young women in the city. Even domestic, service which later became associated with young women, was once of the scarce employment opportunities available to young men in the cities.
The various welfare organizations that she established, concerned with improving life in the townships, are a large part of her legacy. While somewhat conservative — emphasizing domestic duty, family life and Western ‘refinement’ - they nevertheless created very broad networks between women from a range of class backgrounds.
Programme Director,
National Convention of African Women
Charlotte Maxeke was instrumental in the formation of the National Council of African Women in 1933, and became its first National President. The National Council of African Women also had the support of the African National Congress.
In fact recognising the importance of the Council, the President General of the ANC of the time, Reverend Mahabane, invited Charlotte Maxeke to join an ANC deputation to Cape Town in 1939. The purpose of this trip was to interview the Minister of Native Affairs, government officials and several Members of Parliament on the socio-economic conditions of Africans.
Thus we see that the early women’s movement inhabited a critical space in the foundation of the modern society of the 20th century. It was an initiative of the women themselves. Initially, the organisation defined as their terms of reference “care for the welfare of Non-Europeans as well as the training of African women in social welfare.
By doing so the organisation had drawn the debate about the welfare of Africans from the margins to the centre of the major political debates of the time.
By the second Conference of the National Council of African Women in 1938, there is a radical progression towards more progressive activism. The resolutions of the conference reflected a broader agenda on issues threatening the lives of women throughout the country. They campaigned for an end to municipal beer brewing, an increase in wages; compensation for people whose homes were broken down by the municipalities.
It demanded the inclusion of women in Advisory Boards and aid for widows with children, the provision of medical services in rural areas, free compulsory education for Africans, feeding schemes should be extended to African children, equal pay for teachers, and the franchise to include the vote for African women. It also set to work towards facilitating training in trades for disabled persons, and Juvenile Courts for African Children.
We see in their definitions of the scope of participation of women, how the Council, emphasised the entry of women as change agents. Charlotte Maxeke was instrumental in this shift.
These women also brought the power relations embedded in the gender categories to the fore. The Council became the catalyst for articulating the struggle of women in changing the social, political and economic conditions of Africans, both in rural and urban areas. This is a premise that is still articulated in the women’s movements.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Charlotte Maxeke’s legacy continues long after she passed in 1939. We must not take our freedom for granted. She fought for women to have a voice in society. She fought for all of humanity to have access to education. We must not allow these freedoms that we enjoy today, to be taken for granted. We simply cannot allow our schools, universities and clinics to be burnt down.
We must seek to emulate the revolutionary discipline of Charlotte Maxeke. She was a true revolutionary, who was able to argue her case, to propose solutions to the challenges of our time. All of us are called to do so, now as we endeavour to deepen and strengthen the gains made because of pioneers like Charlotte Manye-Maxeke.
In her closing remarks just two months before she passed she said at the Council of African Women and I quote: “This work is not for ourselves. Kill that spirit of “self” and do not live above your people. If you can rise, bring someone with you. Circulate your work and distribute as much information as possible, because this is not your Council, but the Council of African Women from here right to Egypt. Do away with fearful jealousy, kill that spirit and love one another as brothers and sisters. Stand by your motto: Do unto others as ye would that they should unto you”.
We must heed her wisdom.
With the looming local government elections, let all of us turn out in our numbers to vote. Let us be active citizens in our communities. Charlotte Maxeke fought for this right. Let us therefore not take our right to vote for granted.
We have no greater honour to the memory of Charlotte Manye-Maxeke than to carry forward the power of her principle and true courage born of conviction.
Ladies and gentlemen, democracy is a process that each of us has to work at every day, whether in Parliament, in communities or at Institutions of Higher Learning.
There is much work left for all of us to do.
I thank you!
