10 Interesting Facts About Youth Day

10 Interesting Facts About Youth Day. Youth Day, as it is popularly known, is a day in which South Africans honor the youth that was ambushed by the apartheid regime police in Soweto on 16 June 1976. On the day over 500 youths were killed.

1. On the morning of June 16, 1976, thousands of black students went on a protest rally from their schools to Orlando Stadium.

2. They were protesting against an official order which made Afrikaans compulsory in black township schools. The use of local languages was prohibited in these schools whilst the constitution supported that Afrikaans and English be made the official languages of the country.

3. The rally was meant to be a peace protest with the intentions to plea with government not to make Afrikaans compulsory in schools. Things got out of control when the police were called in to disperse the crowds and riots broke out. Hundreds of students were killed as a result.

4. Among those killed, was Hastings Ndlovu, the first child to die from the shootings and 12 year old Hector Pieterson. We also remember Tsietsi Mashinini, who lead the students in protest.

5. Hector was the subject of a powerful photograph taken by Sam Nzima. He was only 12 years old when he was shot and killed by police.

6. Hector’s death in the Soweto Uprising protests, symbolizes the consequences of oppression around the world. Hector Pieterson Memorial Museum is in Orlando West in Soweto. The memorial and museum, has photographs, testimonies and footage of the uprising and protests during that time.

7. Although the protests of 16 June 1976 resulted in a number of casualties, the youth of 1976 played a role in fighting and overcoming the inequality and oppression caused by apartheid.

8. It was first called it Soweto Day but the government changed it to Youth Day during Nelson Mandela’s regime. Nelson Mandela declared Youth Day an official public holiday in 1994.

9. 16 June 2024 was Soweto Uprisings’ 48th anniversary since the incident happened. South Africans embrace the sacrifice and for those who died for this country.

10. This year the commemoration took place at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Limpopo. The theme is: “Actively embracing the socioeconomic gains of our democracy.”