Legacy noun leg·a·cy \ˈle-gə-sē\ – something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past Word Origin: from Medieval Latin lēgātia commission
– Oxford Dictionary
The Pioneers, has been running since 2014 with the principle aim of unearthing the history buried away by the erstwhile apartheid, in a bid to obliterate the legacy built by Africans, particularly in the literary world. Since its launch the Pioneers section has recorded and brought to light the Black Press players of the 1800s. Influenced by the missionary colonial education, the era produced giants such as Tiyo Soga, the first black literary figure, co-translator of the Bible and Pilgrim’s Progress into Xhosa.
Demonstrated impact made by Independent Black Newspaper proprietors 1884-1932, was recorded through John Tengo Jabavu’s Imvo Zabantsundu , Allan Kirkland Soga and Walter Rubusana’s Izwi Labantu. While there were many Tswana publications prior to Solomon T Plaatje and Silas Molema’s it was the duo’s purchase of Koranta ea Becoana, a Tswana/English newspaper from George Nathaniel Henry Whale in 1901, that would be the first ‘native owned ’ Tswana paper.
Basotho, produced a treasure in H S Tlale who played a major role in founding the first Sotho newspaper Mochochono (The Comet) in Basutoland, now known as Lesotho, in 1911. When the Columbia and Oxford Universities educated Pixley Ka Izaka Seme and three other lawyers – Alfred Mandena, R.W. Msimang and G.D Montsioa – founded the African National Congress (ANC), he conceived the idea of establishing a newspaper that could be used as a mouthpiece of the organisation. Abantu-Batho was launched in 1913, a merger between Molomo Oa Batho and Morumia, with C Kunene as English and Zulu editor and D S Lentaka as Sotho editor.
These are but a few pioneers of the 62 we have covered to date who form the wealth of the legacy built by these incredible individuals who have bequeathed worthy history to etch in the hearts and minds of generations to come. As we continue the journey through different eras, we endeavor to keep a promise and a commitment to publish quality stories about men and women who have contributed to the development of our society, as a way to preserving their legacy and recording the history that would have otherwise died along with their spirits.
This section will continue to search for these pioneers and bring them to the fore. Bantu Press Pty Ltd era that sought to commercialise black media consumption, introducing the Bantu World will also be looked into. While we have covered some of the Pioneers referred to, be assured that we will examine the commercialisation era, the Drum era and women Pioneers. This journey is nowhere near over.
The bravest and boldest recorder of history
Sophie Tema Mosimane may have been known for having scribed the story that was accompanied by the globally recognised and iconic Sam Nzima’s June 16, 1976 image exposing Apartheid brutality. But her portfolio of work exposing the erstwhile regime’s suppression of black people was impressive, albeit it having fallen through the cracks of history. Tema, worked for The World, Post, Rand Daily Mail, City Press and Business Day among others.
Michael Tshehla Phahlane: The indestructible jazz journalist
Michael Tshehla Phahlane, the man who gave Soweto its name back in 1963, slipped away quietly earlier this month without a single mention in local media despite the fact that he was the real doyen of black South African journalism and one of its finest wordsmiths.Only the Sowetan carried a 31-word funeral notice accompanied by the standard black and white photo of Phahlane in the weekly In Memoriam section.
Thapelo Mokoatsi John Tengo Jabavu was a prominent pioneer journalist and the founder of the first black owned newspaper Imvo Zabantsundu. In October 1886 his first son, Davidson, was born in King William’s Town. Like his father, Davidson Don Tengo Jabavu (affectionately known as D. D. T Jabavu) played an incredibly important role in our media history. Changing the course of the future and fighting for equality and justice through the pen ran through Davidson Don Tengo Jabavu’s blood....
Phindile Xaba Celebrating a centenary issue this month is a worthy milestone, as the Pioneers section we managed to profile over one hundred black media players and proprietors, connecting historical dots to bring our readers a wealth of hidden gems. We made rare finds of the most hidden treasures that defied even global boundaries. We were able to cover impeccable stories of scribes, historians and captured socio-political commentators who were of African origin all around the world. Their...
1934 – 2018
Nzima was born on August 8, 1934 in Lillydale, on a farm where his father worked in the small village of Bushbuck Ridge, Mpumalanga. He refused to be defined by his circumstances, while attending school he was inspired by his teacher to venture into photography. “I was inspired by our teacher, Ben Mhlongo. He came with a Kodak box camera and started taking pictures at our school. I couldn’t believe it,” Nzima once reminisced during an interview with Azania Mosaka in 2016.
A repository of our hidden African history
Thapelo Mokoatsi speaks to South African politician and the founder of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, about his personal encounters with historical Pioneers who led the way for media freedom.It is a chilly afternoon in Cape Town and Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi only has a few minutes to spare. With his kind face and warm hands, he greets us before rushing us into the IFP offices at Parliament.
A colonial paper in the heart of Africa
At the age of 23, in 1888, the founding father of the Times of Swaziland Allister Mitchel Miller (1864 – 1951) affectionately known, to the Swazi people, as Mabhala (writer) or Mabhal’izincwadi (writer of books or letters) arrived in Swaziland.Nine years later he established the Times of Swaziland with the backing of the colonial government. By then he was a fully knighted British Resident Commissioner and a newspaperman.
Writing the wrong with the pioneers
For the past three years, the Pioneers section has recorded the history of founding black press players in their capacities as journalists, editors and media proprietors. In searching the depth of local and global archives, we discovered many legacy builders from as far back as 1800s and through to early 90s who defied the British, and the subsequent apartheid rules, using only the might of the pen to address socio-political ills of the day.
The case of the Alice Times
The Alice Times and other small publications of its ilk were a collective of small publications in the Cape Colony carrying out a colonial mission hidden in social content only meant for its white readers.Alice Times is one of a collective of small, localized publications that were all situated in the Cape Colony of the time whose content appeared to be sunshine reporting only concentrating on social issues such as obituaries, funeral services and marriage announcements…
“Chairman of Propaganda”
One notable propagandist of the 1920s was Samuel Michael ‘SM’ Bennet Ncwana, who wrote for a prolific number of South African newspapers. Ncwana faced vehement criticism from his peers and rivals alike, for his political volatility. At various times he was a member of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), South Africa’s first major black trade union, the Industrial and Commercial Workers’ Union (ICU)…
Phindile Xaba Independent black owned and controlled press emerged in the late 19th century, gradually overshadowing what was referred to as missionary journalism and media, as the latter was seen as partial to European imperialism, colonialism and in later years apartheid. South Africa's Resistance Press is also known as protest media or alternative media and can be traced as far back as the late 19th and early 20th centuries when self funded black controlled press emerged between the 1880s...
Essayist, opinion maker and thought leader 1896 – 1951
Clements Kadalie, known for being the first black national trade unionist in Southern Africa was more than a labour activist. He was described by Henry Mitchell, a young historian currently completing his P.h.D research on Kadalie, as a mediator, interpreter and broker between diverse publics, advocating for workers’ rights. This former teacher, used all media platforms at his disposal to make his Pan-Africanist opinions public, an essayist of note…
Fighting gender inequality and patriarchal gate keeping
African journalists continentally and in the diaspora have had to deal with slavery, colonialism and civil rights issues before getting recognition as professional media players. For African women, most of whom were either forced out of the continent through generational slavery or exiled due to political volatility they have had to face further prejudices – gender inequality, inadequate education, and patriarchal professional gate keeping.
“My rich family history is unknown in the popular memory”
My first encounter with her came about while walking past her office, on my way to Cory library on campus. I then recognised a name that rung a bell – Matebatso Mokete Moerane – written on a piece of wood placed on a desk at Human Resource offices. The first name that sprung into my mind was M T Moerane, a former editor of the Bantu World…
Apollonia Mathia: writer, gender activist and visionary of Juba
Apollonia Mathia was a rare gem – a women’s rights activist and journalist – who fought tirelessly pre-South Sudan’s liberation from the Khartoum regime. She defied all odds in the turbulent post conflict region, stood for a free media, advocated for women’s voices and used the media as a tool to advance gender equality. She started out as a radio reporter and progressed to become a print journalist.
Discovering EP Ngozwana in The Bantu World
The grand narratives about history are misleading. Apart from the pass protests of the early 1900s and the 1956 march, history would have us believe that black women were not active participants in South Africa’s history. Athambile Masola digs into the archives.Recently I was searching for clues about Noni Jabavu’s life and I stumbled upon the pages of the 1935 edition of The Bantu World. I became intrigued by the representation of black women…
A life of service through activism and journalism
Sikhakhane-Rankin was born in 1943 at the Bridgeman Memorial Maternity Hospital in Johannesburg, and lived with her family in Orlando West close to the residences of ANC stalwarts such as Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.Growing up in Orlando West in the presence of social activists, she played with the Mandela and the Sisulu children. She attended Holy Cross Primary…
Tracing the lineage of Thabo Mbeki
As a politician and a newspaperman, Manasseh Tebatso (“M.T.”) Moerane, was a prominent public figure. He comes from a long lineage of progressive black figures, dating back to the early 1400s. Born on 3 May, 1913, M.T came into the world during the time when the Natives Land Act came into effect, the unjust law that dispossessed African people from their land. “M.T” was surrounded by black intellectuals throughout his life and joined the ANC in 1935…
Founder-financier of Abantu Batho
Stateswoman and founder-financier of Abantu Batho – Swazi Queen-Mother Labotsibeni Mdluli was a force to be reckoned with. In celebration of the International Women’s Day on 8 March, we honour the role of ‘forgotten’ African women in the fight against colonialism. We salute Queen-Mother Labotsibeni Mdluli of Swaziland, a stateswoman and founder of Abantu Batho.Queen Labotsibeni was born in 1858 at eLuhlekweni northern Swaziland…
Continent’s leading lights to be spotlighted this year
In both West and East Africa the birth of African journalism came as a result of collective colonial resistance with a crop of missionary educated elites leading the movement. While most intellectuals were content with quietly building their enterprises and serving their communities in their professional capacities, it was the newspapermen and women who broke new ground and developed a unique voice to address community concerns.
Recording the lives and times of hidden icons of the past
Since the launch of The Journalist two years ago, its Pioneers section has recorded the lives and times of trailblazers in the Black press in South Africa. The pieces that have appeared covered the period from the mid-1800s through to the 20th century. They have brought to the fore previously unacknowledged contributions of individuals who defied British colonialism and apartheid as they combined their work as activists, journalists and media proprietors.
(1919 – 2008)
Writer and journalist Noni Jabavu was a pioneer in many fields. She was the first black South African woman to publish autobiographies. In a remarkable career, she studied music, was a prolific writer, had a stint as a radio personality for the BBC and worked as a film technician and semi-skilled engineer and oxyacetylene welder, working on bomber engine parts during the Second World War.Helen Nontando Jabavu was born on 20 August 1919…
A 50s Indian entertainment magazine that shaped political opinion
K Pillay, the son of a printing press owner, became a key publisher and media proprietor in the 50s when he launched The Graphic, an entertainment magazine that also shaped political opinions.Two years after DF Malan and the Nationalists swept to power on an apartheid ticket, media proprietor Kunnabiran Muthukrishna Pillay launched an entertainment magazine in Durban.
Thousands perished in British concentration camps
Even though the South African War (1899-1902) is largely considered a battle between the British and the Boers, history has erased the unspeakable suffering of black people who were forced to endure sub-human conditions in the concentration camps of one of the most destructive armed conflicts in South Africa’s history.
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