SADTU STATEMENT ON NATIONAL YOUTH DAY – JUNE 16
SADTU Commemorates National Youth Day and Honours the Legacy of the June 16 Uprising
The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) joins the nation in commemorating National Youth Day and marking the 50th anniversary of the historic 16 June 1976 uprising.
This day remains deeply etched in the collective consciousness of the South African liberation struggle and stands as a powerful symbol of resistance against racial oppression, exploitation and injustice.
As we pay tribute to the courageous youth of Soweto and across South Africa who rose in defiance of the brutal system of Bantu Education, we remember that it was a system deliberately designed to entrench inequality, reproduce cheap labour, enforce social inferiority and subjugate Black people within an unjust social and economic order.
The youth of 1976 understood that education is a powerful instrument of liberation. Their bravery, clarity of purpose and sacrifice helped to lay the foundation for the democratic South Africa we enjoy today.
For SADTU, this day is not merely a historical marker on the calendar; it is a profound reminder that education remains a critical site of struggle in the pursuit of social justice, equality and human development. The legacy of 1976 continues to inspire our commitment to defend, transform and deepen public education.
For SADTU, this day is not merely a historical marker on the calendar; it is a profound reminder that education remains a critical site of struggle in the pursuit of social justice, equality and human development. The legacy of 1976 continues to inspire our commitment to defend, transform and deepen public education.
As we remember the pain, defiance and courage of the youth of 1976, we are reminded that language choice is not neutral, curriculum choice is not neutral, and even the classroom is not neutral. Each reflects relations of power, defines whose knowledge matters, and shapes whose humanity is affirmed or denied.
Since the advent of democracy, important gains have been made in widening access to education and in redressing the inequalities of apartheid. These include no-fee schools, the school nutrition programme, scholar transport, access to NSFAS, the expansion of mother tongue-based bilingual education, the deracialisation of institutions, and the democratisation of education governance and access.
SADTU also notes the recent move to advance a new History curriculum, including the proposal to make History compulsory more broadly in the schooling system, a demand the union has raised for many years.
While South Africa has achieved political freedom, the challenges confronting today’s youth remind us that the struggle for genuine emancipation is far from over. Young people continue to face high levels of unemployment, inequality and social exclusion. Youth unemployment remains alarmingly high, with many graduates and qualified young people unable to secure employment opportunities.
These realities have led many young people to question the value of education despite their hard work and academic achievement.
As a union rooted in the education sector, SADTU remains steadfast in its belief that education is a vital tool for social and economic transformation. That is why we continue to advocate for quality public education and training that respond to the needs of a changing economy and society, provide functional skills, support youth entrepreneurship, innovation and job creation initiatives, and build caring, tolerant, patriotic and socially responsible citizens.
As a union of revolutionary professionals and workers in education, the legacy of 1976 compels SADTU to defend public education as a public good and to intensify the struggle for a system rooted in human dignity, social justice, equality and economic emancipation.
The commemoration of 16 June also strengthens our resolve to resist, with determination, the threats to quality public education, including budget cuts, post freezes, underfunding and austerity measures that undermine the transformative role of education in a democratic society.
To fail the youth of today would be to betray the sacrifices made by the generation of 1976. We honour their legacy by recommitting ourselves to creating conditions that empower young people to participate meaningfully in shaping South Africa’s future, not from the margins, but from the centre of our society and economy.
ISSUED BY: SADTU Secretariat