….Biko’s prophetic observation from 1972 explains the new South Africa: “This is one country where it would be possible to create a capitalist black society, if whites were intelligent, if the nationalists were intelligent. And that capitalist black society, black middle class, would be very effective … South Africa could succeed in putting across to the world a pretty convincing, integrated picture, with still 70% of the population being underdogs.” …

…Biko’s philosophy, profoundly influenced by radical philosophers such as Frantz Fanon and Paulo Freire, was grounded in the necessity for the oppressed to lead and liberate themselves. Thus, not only were the minds of the oppressed a key site of struggle, but true liberation could only happen with the dismantling of the oppressive institutions of colonialism and apartheid….

….And yet, as Biko predicted at the height of apartheid, replacing the managers creates only the illusion of change: “I think there is no running away from the fact that now in South Africa there is such an ill distribution of wealth that any form of political freedom which doesn’t touch on the proper distribution of wealth will be meaningless,” he said. “If we have a mere change of face of those in governing positions, what is likely to happen is that black people will continue to be poor, and you will see a few blacks filtering through into the so-called bourgeoisie. Our society will be run almost as of yesterday.”

Full article at Biko would not vote for Ramphele  via Mail & Guardian

Similar Links

• Long Live Steve Biko! Long Live the African Revolution! (http://uhurusolidarity.wordpress.com)
• King William’s Town’s hero:Steve Biko 1946 – 1977 (buffalocity.gov.za)
• Three Decades Later, Biko’s Philosophy of Black Consciousness Resonates (americandailyherald.com)
• The Legacy of Steve Biko’s Fight Against South African Apartheid (colorlines.com )