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6 - Contributions, Absorptions and Repressions of Black Consciousness in MK, 1978–1994

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 May 2023

Toivo Tukongeni Paul Wilson Asheeke
Affiliation:
Georgia State University
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Summary

Chapter 6 begins by offering a broad look at some of the concrete contributions Black Consciousness cadres gave to the African National Congress of South Africa (ANC) and Umkhonto We Sizwe (MK) in exile. At the same time, the reality of MK fighting a war against the apartheid regime backed by its imperialist allies made the resistance movement all the harder. Consequently, Black Consciousness–oriented cadres were trapped in the internal power struggles of the movement, paranoia around the reality of infiltration and the high casualties being inflicted on MK by the apartheid war machine. Close attention is paid to the 1984 MK Mutiny by reassessing some of the oral accounts and written reports which document this sad event. Additionally, Chapter 6 carefully examines statements made by President Oliver Tambo at the Kabwe Conference in 1985 where he discusses at length the new ANC disposition towards Black Consciousness. In summation, this chapter shows how elements of Black Consciousness found ways to survive and, in some cases, thrive within the ANC/MK and South African Communist Party (SACP). However, far too many suffered from distrust, neglect in the camps and imprisonment in part because of their Black Consciousness politics.

Type
Chapter
Information
Arming Black Consciousness
The Azanian Black Nationalist Tradition and South Africa's Armed Struggle
, pp. 207 - 233
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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