1956 Women’s March. Photographer unknown. https://artscomments.wordpress.com/2013/08/09/lillian-ngoyi-one-of-the-women-who-gave-us-womens-day/
For centuries the landmass that would become the nation of South Africa was home to a variety of indigenous African peoples. In the 1600s Dutch and British traders began to establish port communities to supply their ships. Many opted to stay after leaving employment with their trading houses rather than return to their homelands. As the British Empire grew, it came to dominate the region in its pursuit for gold and other valuable minerals. They fought several wars with African tribes, as well as Dutch-descended communities known as Boers. In the 20th century Boers and their descendants, Afrikaners, gained some independence as The Union of South Africa, a dominion of the British Empire. In 1931 it became fully independent.
In 1948 the National Party gained a political majority and began enacting the formal apartheid regime. This program was built on a foundation of long standing racial segregation and labor exploitation from the colonial era, but was designed to institutionalize these policies in a modern nation-state and control the movements and labor of Black, Indian, and mixed-race citizens and deny them any political power or cultural legitimacy within South Africa.
Resistance to such policies dated back to the colonial era but historically faced stiff resistance from White elites. As apartheid became entrenched, political and labor organizing intensified among communities of color and their allies. Black men seeking work in White communities had long been required to carry passbooks. Those who were caught without them were routinely jailed and fined. In the 1950s the government sought to extend the pass system to Black women as well, sparking more protest.
On August 9, 1956, a group of 20,000 dissident women marched to the capitol building in Pretoria to demonstrate against the laws and deliver their petitions directly to Prime Minister Johannes Strijdom. Strijdom was conveniently absent. While the march was a powerful demonstration of resistance and further legitimized the role of women in various political networks, pass laws were indeed imposed on women. It would take many decades of struggle before apartheid was dismantled in the 1990s.
August 9 is still celebrated as National Women’s Day in South Africa.
Sources:
South African Women Commemorate Historic 1956 March- CGTN Africa
The 1956 Women's March Pretoria 9 August-South African History Online
How did Apartheid Change South Africa?- Encyclopedia Britannica
Pass Law- Encyclopedia Britannica
Lillian Masediba Ngoyi- South African History Online
Helen Joseph- South African History Online
Rahima Moosa- South African History Online
Sophia Theresa Williams de Bruyn- South African History Online