Triumphs and tears: new exhibitions in praise of women

New exhibitions at the Slave Lodge

Cape Town, 27 May 2008 – Two new exhibitions opened at the Slave Lodge museum during May and will run until 31 August 2008. Hosted in partnership with the Apartheid Museum, both exhibitions highlight the role of women in the struggle against apartheid.

‘Our Triumphs and Our Tears’ presents an overview of women’s oppression and resistance in 20th century South Africa. ‘Malibongwe: Let us praise the women’ is a photographic exhibition of portraits by Gisële Wulfsohn of veteran women activists, including Albertina Sisulu, Zainab Asvat, Hilda Bernstein, Jeanie Noel and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. The exhibitions are on until 31 August 2008.

Women were on the march for much of the last century, demanding their rights. The pivotal role that women played in the struggle for democracy in South Africa has only recently been recognised.

For the most part, women’s struggles were not separate from those of men. Both faced the oppression of racial discrimination and the harsh actions of a repressive regime. Women activists chose to foreground the struggle for national liberation rather than the discrimination subjected

to their gender.

“We women do not form a society separate from men. There is only one society, and it is made up of both women and men. As women we share the problems and anxieties of our men, and join hands with them to remove social evils and obstacles to progress.” - The Women’s Charter,
1954

But, at the same time, being at the forefront of resistance began to influence how women felt about their role in society and in the home. Their continued defiance in the face of persecution and hardship destroyed the notion of female subservience or inferiority. In the course of the struggle against apartheid, a new gender consciousness emerged among South African women.

Enquiries: Wieke van Delen, Tel 021 464 1265 or email wvandelen@iziko.org.za

Images:

Please note: The copyright holder of the above images is Gisĕle Wulfsohn.

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