Contemporary Student Movements in South Africa: Activism, Race, and University Privatization

Leigh-Ann Naidoo, University of Cape Town

How are university students, both in South Africa and the US, seeking to transform the state of higher education? Throughout history, students have been at the forefront of battles to transform our institutions. Most famously, this happened in 1968-69, when students pushed civil rights and anti-war politics into a global movement of cultural resistance. The current period seems to be another such key moment: university students around the world are taking the lead in challenging the corporatization of higher education, most strongly felt by oppressive structures of fees and debt. Leigh-Ann Naidoo will discuss this movement in South Africa, where the #RhodesMustFall and #FeesMustFall protests sought to decolonize education and lower student fees while calling attention to the post-apartheid government’s growing estrangement from the needs of its people. In the process, she will show us how the US and South Africa are connected in their fight for racial and economic justice. This exciting and important talk will remind us of the need to pay close attention to new student movements across the world.