South Africa History: Primary Sources

The Black People and Whence They Came, purpose

record African origins and history for posterity; affirm African civilization and rationality

The Black People and Whence They Came, intended audience

educated Africans and missionaries; later historians of African heritage

The Black People and Whence They Came, main points

- Zulu and Nguni peoples have ancient lineage, not "tribal savages"

- Counters colonial claims of African primitiveness

- Shows knowledge of oral history and precolonial kings

- Merges Christian framework with indigenous memory

A Rebel Slave, purpose

record legal justification for Galant's execution; reveals enslaved resistance; legal testimony

A Rebel Slave, intended audience

colonial authorities documenting control and punishment

A Rebel Slave, main points

- Galant attacked his master's family; framed as barbaric rebellion

- His testimony shows injustice, rage against cruelty

- Reveals enslaved agency and limits of legal justice for the oppressed

Manifesto, purpose

justify the Boers' secession from the Cape under British rule

Manifesto, intended audience

British authorities and Boer settlers

Manifesto, main points

- Claims British government oppressed settlers and favored Africans

- Frames migration as pursuit of "freedom and property rights"

- Appeals to Christian morality and divine sanction

The Treatment of Indentured Laborers, purpose

defend child indenture (inboek system) and settler control of Khoisan labor

The Treatment of Indentured Laborers, intended audience

colonial officials and settlers defending forced labor

The Treatment of Indentured Laborers, main points

- Khoisan portrayed as "lazy, untrustworthy"

- Forced child labor framed as "protection"

- Freedom compared to "second Haiti" — fear of Black uprising

- Servitude justified as moral necessity

The Necessity of Slavery, purpose

argue slavery is economically essential to the Cape

The Necessity of Slavery, intended audience

british colonial administrators reviewing slave policy

The Necessity of Slavery, main points

- Slavery a "necessary evil" for agriculture

- Abolition would "ruin the colony"

- Enslaved people described as naturally suited for labor

- Admits moral corruption but defends economic benefit

Protesting the Vagrancy Ordinance, purpose

protest reimposition of forced labor through vagrancy laws

Protesting the Vagrancy Ordinance, intended audience

colonial government and missionary supporters

Protesting the Vagrancy Ordinance, main points

- First collective protest by free Black South Africans

- Describe brutality under inboek system ("sleeping among dogs")

- Celebrate freedom: "We now appear like human beings"➡️

- Condemn vagrancy law as return to slavery

The Problem of God, purpose

explain difficulty of converting Africans due to "lack of belief in God"

The Problem of God, intended audience

London Missionary Society and European readers

The Problem of God, main points

- Claims Africans have no concept of a creator

- Reinterprets "Morimo" (African spirit) into Christian "God"

- Labels indigenous religion as "darkness and superstition"

- Justifies missionary work as moral rescue

Visit to a Mission Community in Natal, purpose

observe African converts and debate how Christianity coexists with custom

Visit to a Mission Community in Natal, intended audience

British church and reformers

Visit to a Mission Community in Natal, main points

- Describes tension between Christian ethics and African marriage/law

- Advocates gradual reform, not eradication, of custom

- Defends African converts' intelligence and morality

On God and Ancestors, purpose

explain Zulu cosmology and the role of ancestral spirits (amadhlozi)

On God and Ancestors, intended audience

James Stuart and colonial scholars recording "native religion"

On God and Ancestors, main points

- Mvelinqangi = distant creator; amadhlozi = active ancestors

- Ancestors appear as snakes; intervene in illness or success

- Critiques missionaries' misuse of Nkulunkulu

- Ancestral spirits never die; maintain social morality

Statement of the Prophetess Nonkosi, purpose

explain her prophetic visions and divine commands to kill cattle

Statement of the Prophetess Nonkosi, intended audience

British colonial officials interrogating her testimony

Statement of the Prophetess Nonkosi, main points

- Spirit "Umlanjeni" promised resurrection of ancestors

- Killing cattle = faith act to bring renewal

- Vision of abundance under the vlei (spirit world)

- Movement as resistance through prophecy

Industrial Johannesburg, purpose

praise industrial progress and defend compound labor system

Industrial Johannesburg, intended audience

British imperial readers and policymakers

Industrial Johannesburg, main points

- Calls Johannesburg "Aladdin's City"

- Defends compounds as "moral and sanitary"

- Claims African workers "benefit" under British discipline

- Condemns alcohol and defends white control

The Story of the Diamond Fields, purpose

celebrate mining development as symbol of civilization

The Story of the Diamond Fields, intended audience

British middle-class and imperial audience

The Story of the Diamond Fields, main points

- Kimberley = "marvel of industry"

- African laborers described as "ants," "savages" learning discipline

- Work = moral civilizer

- Defends racial hierarchy under British order

Extracts from the Commission on Native Laws and Customs, purpose

explain and defend African customary law to colonial authorities

Extracts from the Commission on Native Laws and Customs, intended audience

Cape colonial government and legal reformers

Extracts from the Commission on Native Laws and Customs, main points

- Chiefs ruled consultatively — justice through councils

- Bridewealth ensures morality, not "wife purchase"

- Initiation rites maintain respect and maturity

- Witchcraft belief sustains social peace

- Polygamy = economic necessity

- Fear of British law undermining tradition

Among the Xhosa in 1800, purpose

record Christian evangelism and divine acts among the Xhosa

Among the Xhosa in 1800, intended audience

European missionary supporters (LMS)

Among the Xhosa in 1800, main points

- Missionary nearly killed by Ngqika's people; saved by faith

- Rain miracle used as divine proof

- Africans view him as rainmaker; cultural misunderstanding

- Attributes drought to sin and God's will

A Century of Wrong, purpose

Justify Boer resistance by portraying British rule as 100 years of injustice

A Century of Wrong, intended audience

Afrikaners and foreign sympathizers

A Century of Wrong, main points

Britain seized the Cape illegally (1795)

Boers denied self-government

Slavery abolition economically ruined Boers (poor compensation)

Britain favored Africans over Boers

Great Trek framed as escape from tyranny

Britain betrayed Boer independence (annexations)

War presented as necessary self-defense

Concentration Camps, purpose

Expose British abuses in Boer concentration camps and demand reform

Concentration Camps, intended audience

British public, Parliament, and anti-war critics

Concentration Camps, main points

British camps housed Boer women and children

Overcrowding, poor sanitation, and lack of food

High death rates, especially among children

Suffering caused by British scorched-earth policy

Camps described as cruel and unnecessary

Moral condemnation of British war conduct

Workers of the World Unite and Fight for a White South Africa, purpose

White South African labor activists (white workers / trade union voices)

Workers of the World Unite and Fight for a White South Africa, intended audience

White working-class South Africans

Workers of the World Unite and Fight for a White South Africa, main points

Calls for worker unity, but only for whites

Socialism framed as protection of white labor

Black workers portrayed as threat to wages and jobs

Supports job color bar and racial exclusion

Class struggle subordinated to racial hierarchy

Early foundation of apartheid-era labor ideology

The Bulhoek Massacre, purpose

Justify state violence against an African religious movement

The Bulhoek Massacre, intended audience

White South African public and officials

The Bulhoek Massacre, main points

Israelites (African millenarian sect) refused to vacate land

Led by prophet Enoch Mgijima

Government labeled group fanatical and dangerous

Police and army used lethal force

Hundreds of Africans killed

State framed massacre as law enforcement

Reveals intolerance of African religious autonomy

The Persecution of Indians, purpose

Expose racial discrimination against Indians and demand equal legal rights

The Persecution of Indians, intended audience

British government, imperial public, Indian community

The Persecution of Indians, main points

Indians subjected to discriminatory laws and passes

Treated as inferior despite being British subjects

Fingerprinting and registration laws humiliate Indians

Legal inequality contradicts British ideals of justice

Advocates nonviolent resistance and moral appeal

Links South African racism to broader imperial injustice

The Journey to Pretoria, purpose

Describe everyday racial discrimination faced by Black South Africans

The Journey to Pretoria, intended audience

General readers; later anti-racist and African nationalist audiences

The Journey to Pretoria, main points

Travel heavily restricted for Black people

Must carry passes and permits

Constant police harassment and fear of arrest

Humiliation in public transport and lodging

Shows how segregation shaped daily life, not just law

Illustrates normalization of racial control

Programme of Action, purpose

Shift the ANC toward mass action and militant African nationalism

Programme of Action, intended audience

African population; ANC members and activists

Programme of Action, main points

Calls for African self-determination and leadership

Rejects reliance on petitions and white liberal support

Advocates boycotts, strikes, civil disobedience

Emphasizes unity and discipline among Africans

Defines freedom as political, economic, and social equality

Lays groundwork for later anti-apartheid resistance

Women's Charter, purpose

Demand full political, legal, and social equality for women

Women's Charter, intended audience

South African government; women of all races; anti-apartheid movement

Women's Charter, main points

Women suffer triple oppression (race, class, gender)

Calls for equal rights in law, work, and education

Demands end to pass laws for women

Links women's liberation to national liberation

Asserts women's role in political struggle

Frames equality as essential to democracy

Freedom Charter, purpose

Articulate a democratic, nonracial vision for a future South Africa

Freedom Charter, intended audience

Oppressed South Africans; anti-apartheid activists; international supporters

Freedom Charter, main points

"The People Shall Govern" (universal suffrage)

Equality before the law for all races

Land redistribution and shared national wealth

Equal education and labor rights

End to racial segregation and discrimination

Blueprint for post-apartheid South Africa

Statement from the Dock, purpose

Justify armed resistance and defend anti-apartheid struggle

Statement from the Dock, intended audience

South African state, global public

Statement from the Dock, main points

Apartheid denies basic rights

Peaceful protest exhausted

Turn to sabotage, not terror

Goal = democracy and equality

Willingness to die for freedom

The Pan Africanist Congress, purpose

Explain PAC ideology and split from ANC

The Pan Africanist Congress, intended audience

Africans; anti-apartheid activists

The Pan Africanist Congress, main points

Africa belongs to Africans

Rejects multiracialism

Emphasizes African nationalism

Advocates mass action

Sharpeville campaign context

Manifesto of the Paramount Chief, purpose

Defend separate development and homeland system

Manifesto of the Paramount Chief, intended audience

South African government; Transkei Africans

Manifesto of the Paramount Chief, main points

Supports ethnic self-rule

Claims independence = dignity

Rejects ANC militancy

Collaborates with apartheid state

Justifies Bantustans

The Peasants' Revolt, purpose

Analyze rural African resistance to apartheid

The Peasants' Revolt, intended audience

Activists; scholars

The Peasants' Revolt, main points

Land dispossession fuels revolt

Chiefs collaborate with state

Peasants resist taxes and passes

Rural struggle = political struggle

Counters idea Africans were passive

White Racism and Black Consciousness, purpose

Define psychological liberation as key to freedom

White Racism and Black Consciousness, intended audience

Black South Africans

White Racism and Black Consciousness, main points

Racism internalized by blacks

Liberal whites reinforce dominance

Black pride essential

Psychological freedom precedes political freedom

Rejects white leadership

Reporting on the Soweto Uprising, 17 June 1976, purpose

Report state violence against students

Reporting on the Soweto Uprising, 17 June 1976, intended audience

Public; international observers

Reporting on the Soweto Uprising, 17 June 1976, main points

Students protest Afrikaans instruction

Police open fire

Children killed and injured

State repression exposed

Uprising spreads nationwide

Students and the Soweto Uprising, purpose

Give firsthand student perspective

Students and the Soweto Uprising, intended audience

General readers; later historians

Students and the Soweto Uprising, main points

Youth political awareness

Organizing against Bantu Education

Police brutality

Fear and courage of students

Youth as political actors

The United Democratic Front, purpose

Mobilize mass opposition to apartheid state

The United Democratic Front, intended audience

South African public; activists

The United Democratic Front, main points

Nonracial mass movement

Unites churches, unions, civic groups

Opposes apartheid constitution

Grassroots resistance

Prepares ground for democracy

Nationalize the Mines, purpose

Argue for state ownership of mines to address inequality

Nationalize the Mines, intended audience

Black South Africans; political supporters

Nationalize the Mines, main points

Mining wealth benefits elites, not the poor

Nationalization = economic justice

Freedom incomplete without economic power

Uses apartheid inequality as justification

Populist, militant rhetoric

Witchcraft, Violence, and Democracy in Soweto, purpose

Explain persistence of witchcraft beliefs in modern democracy

Witchcraft, Violence, and Democracy in Soweto, intended audience

Scholars; educated public

Witchcraft, Violence, and Democracy in Soweto, main points

Witchcraft explains misfortune and insecurity

Democracy does not eliminate spiritual fear

Violence linked to moral anxiety

Modernity and tradition coexist

Challenges "rational state" assumptions

Lessons Learned, purpose

Reflect on violence, forgiveness, and reconciliation