Young South Africans consider the intersections of freedom, art, and activism as a ‘new freedom’ is envisioned.
Thirty-one years into democracy, the question of what freedom truly means remains at the heart of South Africa’s national dialogue. On Thursday, June 26, the Nelson Mandela Foundation provided a space of reflection, resistance, and reimagining as young people from across the country gathered under the theme Born Free but Still Not Bound: Redefining Freedom for South African Youth.
June, known as Youth Month, honours the historic 1976 student uprising and continues to carry the weight of memory. But as many young people shared, the legacy of freedom is still unevenly felt. South Africa remains the most unequal country in the world, with economic hardships and social instability disproportionately affecting the youth.
Quoting her father, Amahle Invelo Jaxa, a passionate social activist, said being “legally free but economically excluded is no better than being in chains”.
“Yes, we are free to speak our minds, but who listens when unemployment is almost at 45%… when 60% of them have never had a job?” She stressed that memory must be a form of resistance. “An idea, unlike walls, cannot be locked down… As young people, we cannot afford to inherit struggle passively but must repurpose it to fuel our ideas and our art.”
Attendee, Marievonne Daya added: “Freedom cannot be measured just by the fall of apartheid alone; it must be stated in every day of our lives.” She mapped out today’s youth challenges of unemployment, crime, substance abuse, and mental health, and called on her peers to carry forward the unfinished struggle of 1976 for a better standard of living.
Also in attendance was Dr Naledi Pandor, former Minister of International Relations and Cooperation and current Board Chair of the Nelson Mandela Foundation. She marked the 70th anniversary of the Freedom Charter (adopted in June 1955) and honoured the memories of the youth from 1976.
“Apartheid is a crude, sophisticated system of social engineering,” she said, drawing a comparison to Israel’s ongoing treatment of Palestinians. “The struggle and concept of resistance were enriched through young people’s leadership,” she added, naming icons like Solomon Mahlangu, Steve Biko, and Hector Pieterson. “If we don’t think of the rhetoric of what society we are trying to form, then we are building a dangerous society.”
Programme director and advocacy coordinator at the foundation, Nomahlozi Ramhloki, closed the event with a powerful reminder, “The thing about freedom in 1994 is that the work was only beginning,” she said. It would be a betrayal if we inherited a democracy and did nothing with it.
What unfolded at the Nelson Mandela Foundation was far more than a panel discussion. It lit a spark for the collective reawakening of young South Africans to boldly imagine a future where freedom is a lived experience.
FEATURED IMAGE: Photo of the Nelson Mandela Foundation logo
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