As we stare the 40th anniversary of June 16 in the face, this generation is plagued with one question. What is your legacy, asks Nomaswazi Nkosi.
They say talent skips a generation and I have a sneaking suspicion that people think this generation has been skipped.
We’ve been called “born frees” or the “Y-generation” but whatever the name, the characteristics are basically the same: born in a certain generation and vastly different from the generation that preceded us.
As we stare the 40th anniversary of June 16 in the face, this generation is plagued with one question: What is your legacy?
Forty years on, the country still celebrates the legacy of the youth that made international headlines.
That day is still etched in the minds of millions of South Africans because many of them are still alive to tell the tale of what transpired on June 16, 1976.
If you were not yet born you have the Hector Pieterson Museum, Apartheid Museum, Freedom Park and many other places of contact to find the history of the student uprisings.
For those who did not survive, there are shrines built in their honour.
And rightfully so. When you think about the sacrifice they made it should blow your mind.
Let’s examine the life of Teboho “Tsietsi” Mashinini. He is credited as being the main pupil behind the uprisings in Soweto.
At a tender age he was deeply involved in the politics of South Africa, finding ways of confronting and challenging the Department of Bantu Education.
He spoke critically of the government of the time knowing it could cost him his life.
Due to him leading the pupils during the uprising and his repeated criticism of the state, he became enemy number one - South Africa’s most wanted man.
He had to go into hiding as the police harassed his family, constantly looking for him. On two occasions it is said he had to dress in women’s clothing to disguise himself from the police and because of his handsome features, he got away with it.
He eventually fled the country and went into exile in London, and various African countries before settling in Guinea.
This is all good and well, as many people did this during the liberation Struggle but not many were mere teenagers.
He, as a teenager, had to leave his family and flee the country.
He returned home years later... in a coffin.
Forty years from now what will we say is our legacy?
What will our children be asking us about that would fascinate them four decades after the event?
Which schools will bear the names of the heroes of our generation?
How about the history books? What will fill their pages?
Will it still be Hector Pieterson? Tsietsi Mashinini? Mbuyisa Makhubo?
What will our claim to fame be since fame is what most youngsters crave nowadays?
I cringed when in 2013 the word “selfie” was named the Oxford dictionary word of the year.
Immediately I thought of Kim Kardashian - as the self-confessed queen of selfies - and how this generation could be marked by things that really did very little to contribute anything to society.
Now don’t get me wrong - selfies can be fun. However, as the techno-savvy generation, what are we doing with what we have to work with that will shape society?
Are we starting charities?
Are we winning Nobel prizes?
Are we leaders on the international stage?
No we’re not, but we can be.
Should we walk in the footsteps of our forefathers and go to exile?
I don’t think so. It’s already been done.
They identified their struggle, they fought, they made history, they changed the course of history, and they liberated themselves. Case closed.
I don’t think we have to walk in their footsteps. Those are big shoes to fill.
The #FeesMustFall movement was an important indicator of what an enlightened and determined youth can achieve.
I, however, don’t yet see it as something that will be celebrated 40 years from now.
Unless of course fees do actually fall...
Until that day arrives, let’s do more than burn university buildings to grab headlines.
We can actually put to great use the doors the 1976 generation opened for us.
Start businesses, start charities, start political parties, study, emancipate yourselves economically in whichever way you can.
We should instead carve our own path. There’s no need to carry a mountain of expectations on our shoulders.
We don’t need to emulate what the Mashininis of this world did. We don’t need to repeat history.
We can take the baton and run with it. Do even better than they did.
If we do not identify our own purpose in this country, we will forever be stuck in the shadow of the Class of ‘76.
Our torch will shine brighter if we identify our strengths, talents and goals and work hard to achieve them.
Pretoria News