The Personal and Political Experiences of Oliver and Adelaide Tambo”

South African Exiles in the Anti-Apartheid Movement: The Personal and Political Experiences of Oliver and Adelaide Tambo”

Sabotage. Boycotts. Economic sanctions. Radio Freedom. The anti-apartheid movement was a multifaceted struggle that united diverse interests in pursuit of a democratic South Africa. This talk highlights the leadership of South African exiles Oliver and Adelaide Tambo, the married, dynamic duo who served as key leaders of the African National Congress (ANC), a leading anti-apartheid organization banned in South Africa in 1960. It documents the Tambos’ efforts to re-establish the ANC abroad, the challenges of waging a mass mobilization campaign in exile, and the tumultuous domestic and global politics that tested the ANC’s strength as a liberation movement. With the ANC becoming South Africa’s first democratically elected government in 1994, this talk ultimately reflects on the international solidarities and contestations that contributed to the downfall of apartheid and characterized one of the most powerful global social movements of the twentieth century.

Laura Cox is a PhD candidate in the History Department at UNC-Chapel Hill. She is a Royster and Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellow. Her research centers South African women exiles and global coalition building during the anti-apartheid movement, examining how activists negotiated, challenged, or operated within different forms of racial and gender stratification.

Presented during International Education Week 2022. Part of the 'Resilience in the Face of Conflict' series for K-12 Educators.