Steve Biko was viewed as a threat by the apartheid regime. For years he was accused of being a dangerous agitator who influenced people to use violent means to overthrow the state.
Steve Biko was viewed as a threat by the apartheid regime. For years he was accused of being a dangerous agitator who influenced people to use violent means to overthrow the state. He can be viewed as a dangerous agitator because of the organizations he set up and the political stance he took, but biko in no way used means of violence to overthrow the state. Throughout my essay i will argue the point that Steve biko took a passive stance when protesting.
To define black consciousness it has been argued that “The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” To liberate themselves, black people had to redefine their values, self-image, and entire outlook. Steve Biko diagnosed the problem of oppression in South Africa as a problem of culture. This is because Whites described African culture in derogatory terms, and Black South Africans were ashamed of their history, and their ‘primitive’ religion and art.
The Black Consciousness Movement urged a defiant rejection of apartheid, especially among Black workers and the youth. The South African Students Organization (SASO) – an arm of the movement – was founded by Black students who refused to join NUSAS, another student led organization. At the same time, Black workers began to organize trade unions in defiance of anti-strike laws. In 1973, there were strikes throughout the nation. This culminated in the Soweto Uprising of 1976.
The Essay on Black People and South Africa
The movie invictus portrays a very controversial issue that has been presented throughout history in many ethnic groups and is seen in societies up to these days. The apartheid is clearly pictured in the movie through many of the attitudes and actions that people take towards the other race they live in their day by day. What is more, Mandela constitutes one of the most important figures in South ...
In 1976, student protests against Bantu education in Soweto, led to a two-year uprising that spread to Black townships across the country. The protests encompassed all Black grievances against the apartheid system, and in that period police reportedly killed many protesters, including schoolchildren. Workers then mobilized to protest police killings of innocent demonstrators.
The emerging Black Consciousness philosophy was transforming the way young Black people thought, and it boosted their self esteem. The introduction of Afrikaans frustrated this change. This caused an inferiority complex. This language was seen as an instrument for giving orders. They believed that the imposition of Afrikaans was designed to train them for servitude
On 13 June 1976 the South African Students Movement (SASM) Action Committee resolved to organize a peaceful protest march against the introduction of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction. The 16 June riots demonstrated the impact of BC, and marked its emergence as a revolutionary consciousness which influenced and motivated Black students across the country to challenge oppressive structures and ideas.
Biko’s brutal death made him a martyr in the history of Black resistance. We can see in the way that they killed Steve Biko, he was a major threat to them, a dangerous agitator, but in no way did he intend the protests to get violent or kill anybody in anyway. He caused the black people to start thinking for themselves so they can create a change and the government saw this as a threat.
