2014 Annual John Langalibalele Dube Memorial Lecture
Writing women, gendering history: What would it mean to look at the 20th anniversary of South Africa’s democracy from the perspective of Nokuthela Dube?
“Remembering the nation, dismembering women?” is the title of Meg Samuelson’s 2007 edited manuscript which aptly captures the fate of women in South Africa’s documented and celebrated history in the post-apartheid era. To illustrate, compared to the well-known and revered John Langalibalele Dube’s name, in spite of the fact that “… a century ago she made a big contribution to South Africa’s [liberation] movement, helping to form the country we know today” (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-27702630), his first wife Nokutela Dube’s name remains unknown to many South Africans.
Born in 1873 in Inanda (KZN), Nokutela Mdima was educated at Inanda Seminary. A scholar, musician, an educator and leader of women’s groups, Nokuthela Dube, co-founded the Ohlange Institute, Ilanga LaseNatal and co-authored the first isiZulu songbook. Her teachings on education, self-reliance, music and domestic science blended well with her life of a pioneer African leader. She eventually died in 1917, was buried in an unmarked grave in Johannesburg where she was virtually forgotten until recent efforts largely initiated by the work of Prof Cherif Keita, a Malian-born scholar working and living in the US, brought her name to the fore once again.
As UKZN’s College of Humanities celebrates and reflects on the first 20 years of the post-apartheid South Africa and their implications for its academic agenda, in this year’s annual John Langalibalele Memorial lecture, we seek to draw from the educational and activist legacy of Nokuthela Dube, not only to look back, but to also look forward as we grapple with our new struggles. What can we learn from her legacy that can better inform efforts towards gender equity in a country currently beseeched with unparalleled violence against women and girls? How can we write women like her, not only into our history, but also into our ‘national development plans’ going forward?
Organised by the School of Education and the School of School of Religion, Philosophy and Classics in collaboration with the University Language Planning & Development Office, the 2014 Annual JL Dube Memorial lecture will bring together academics, students, religious leaders, heritage practitioners (archivists, museum curators), politicians and social activists. Dr Gcina Mhlophe, renowned activist, storyteller, poet, actor, playwright, director, author and Executive Director and founder of the Gcinamasiko Arts & Heritage Trust will deliver this year’s lecture to be held as follows:
Date: 11 September 2014
Time: 5.30 to 6 pm
Venue: Colin Webb auditorium, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg campus