African National Congress. Youth League

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The African National Congress (ANC) was formed in 1912 as the South African Native National Congress (it changed its name to the ANC in 1923) with the aim of replacing tribal opposition to white rule with a united African force. At first its membership was narrow - its leaders drawn from among traditional chiefs and wealthy Africans, its aims were limited and its activities were law-abiding. An attempt by J.T. Gumede to create a mass anti-imperialist movement was defeated by the moderates in 1930, following which the ANC lapsed into inactivity. With an enlarged membership, a new President-General, Dr A.P. Xuma, and the adoption in 1943 of a new constitution and political programme - calling for full political rights for the first time - the ANC began its transformation into mass movement. It began to co-operate with other organisations, like the Communist Party and the South African Indian Congress. The Congress Youth League, formed in 1944, played an increasingly powerful role within the ANC: in 1949, its Programme of Action, with mass opposition to apartheid at its heart, was adopted as ANC policy. The `Defiance' campaign of 1952 was the result and, though eventually broken by the state forces, it did give the ANC a mass membership. Under the Presidency of Albert Lutuli and the leadership of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and others, the ANC became the leading resistance force in South Africa. The alliances it developed with other organisations, including the South African Indian Congress and the Congress of Democrats, led to the formation of the Congress Alliance, whose delegates adopted the Freedom Charter at the Congress of the People in 1955. This was adopted as the ANC's programme in 1956. In the same year, the Charter was used as the basis of a charge of treason against 156 members of the Congress Alliance. All of the accused in the 'Treason Trials' were acquitted, but in April 1960 the ANC was forced underground when it was banned as an `unlawful organisation' following the pass law campaign and the Sharpeville massacre. Many leaders went into exile and an external mission under Oliver Tambo and a military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), under Mandela were formed. After the arrest at Rivonia in 1963 of Mandela, Sisulu and other leaders and their imprisonment, ANC activities were for a while based mainly on the work of the external mission and the development of MK. However, following the rise of mass opposition among workers and students in the 1970s and 80s, the ANC's position as the leading anti-apartheid force was confirmed after the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990 and his and the ANC's subsequent victory in the election of 1994. The South African Indian Congress was formed when the Natal, Transvaal and Cape Indian Congresses merged in 1920. Like the ANC, it was at first a moderate organisation until the rise of radical leaders like Dr Yusuf Dadoo and Dr G.M. Naicker in the 1940s. As well as organising passive resistance and strikes by Indian workers from 1946 onwards, they developed links with other resistance movements, first through the Non-European Unity Movement, then with the ANC. In 1947 Dadoo, Naicker and Xuma of the ANC agreed a pact for joint action by the South African Indian Congress and the ANC. The SA Indian Congress joined the Defiance Campaign in1952 and then the Congress Alliance in 1953. It had members among the Treason Trial defendants and in MK when it was formed in 1961. Though never banned, its leaders and membership were broken by state repression in the early 1960s. The Natal Indian Congress was revived in 1971 and the Transvaal Indian Congress in 1983. Both were prominent in the establishment of the United Democratic Front in the mid-1980s.

From the guide to the African National Congress Papers, 1920-1976, (Institute of Commonwealth Studies)

The African National Congress (ANC) was formed in 1912 as the South African Native National Congress (it changed its name to the ANC in 1923) with the aim of replacing tribal opposition to white rule with a united African force. At first its membership was narrow - its leaders drawn from among traditional chiefs and wealthy Africans, its aims were limited and its activities were law-abiding. An attempt by J.T. Gumede to create a mass anti-imperialist movement was defeated by the moderates in 1930, following which the ANC lapsed into inactivity. With an enlarged membership, a new President-General, Dr A.P. Xuma, and the adoption in 1943 of a new constitution and political programme - calling for full political rights for the first time - the ANC began its transformation into mass movement. It began to co-operate with other organisations, like the Communist Party and the South African Indian Congress. The Congress Youth League, formed in 1944, played an increasingly powerful role within the ANC: in 1949, its Programme of Action, with mass opposition to apartheid at its heart, was adopted as ANC policy. The `Defiance' campaign of 1952 was the result and, though eventually broken by the state forces, it did give the ANC a mass membership. Under the Presidency of Albert Lutuli and the leadership of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and others, the ANC became the leading resistance force in South Africa. The alliances it developed with other organisations, including the South African Indian Congress and the Congress of Democrats, led to the formation of the Congress Alliance, whose delegates adopted the Freedom Charter at the Congress of the People in 1955. This was adopted as the ANC's programme in 1956. In the same year, the Charter was used as the basis of a charge of treason against 156 members of the Congress Alliance. All of the accused in the 'Treason Trials' were acquitted, but in April 1960 the ANC was forced underground when it was banned as an `unlawful organisation' following the pass law campaign and the Sharpeville massacre. Many leaders went into exile and an external mission under Oliver Tambo and a military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), under Mandela were formed. After the arrest at Rivonia in 1963 of Mandela, Sisulu and other leaders and their imprisonment, ANC activities were for a while based mainly on the work of the external mission and the development of MK. However, following the rise of mass opposition among workers and students in the 1970s and 80s, the ANC's position as the leading anti-apartheid force was confirmed after the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990 and his and the ANC's subsequent victory in the election of 1994.

From the guide to the African National Congress: Meeting with South African Business Delegates, 1985, (Institute of Commonwealth Studies)

Established in 1912, the African National Congress was created to provide a political avenue for the struggle for equality of Blacks in South Africa. Working in exile from 1960 until 1990, members of the ANC established foreign offices to continue the political work necessary to end apartheid in South Africa. The governing party since 1994, the ANC has established its archives at the University of Fort Hare, an historically Black institution. In March 1999, the ANC and the University of Connecticut signed a Memorandum of Understanding establishing a partnership to foster training, assistance and cooperation.

From the description of African National Congress collection, 1993-1999. (University of Connecticut). WorldCat record id: 148083938

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn Tambo, Oliver, 1917-1993. Oliver Tambo papers, 1960-1992. University of Connecticut, Homer Babbidge Library
referencedIn Luthuli, A. J. (Albert John), 1898-1967. Albert John Luthuli papers, 1922-1970 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Flash collection, 1946-1952 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Colin Cameron Collection of Nyasaland / Malawi Government Documents, 1952-1969 Edinburgh University Library
referencedIn Federation of South African Women. Federation of South African Women records, 1954-1964 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
creatorOf African National Congress. Auden House collection [microform]. Center for Research Libraries, CRL
referencedIn Matthews, Z. K. (Zachariah Keodirelang), 1901-1968. Zachariah Keodirelang Matthews papers, 1924-1968 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Oliver Tambo papers University of Connecticut. Libraries
referencedIn Gerhart, Gail M.,. Gail M. Gerhart collection, 1944-1979 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn South Africa: Political Parties Material, 1919- Institute of Commonwealth Studies
referencedIn Papers of Professor Claire Palley, 1965-1976 Borthwick Institute for Archives, University of York
referencedIn South African Subject Collection, 1941-1997 Hoover Institution Archives
referencedIn Buthelezi, Chief Mangosuthu Gatsha, 1970-1976 School of Oriental and African Studies
referencedIn Moss, Glenn,. The State vs. Glenn Moss and four others, 1976, [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Molema, Silas Modiri, 1941-1966 School of Oriental and African Studies
referencedIn Benson, Mary, 1946-1974 School of Oriental and African Studies
referencedIn South Africa collection, 1990-2003 (inclusive), 1992-1996 (bulk). Yale University Library
referencedIn South African apartheid collection, 1961-1991 (inclusive), 1985-1988 (bulk). Yale University Library
referencedIn South African documents and press clippings collection, 1939-1980 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Joffe, J. G. Rivonia trial typescript, [microform]. Yale University Library
creatorOf African National Congress. African National Congress collection, 1993-1999. University of Connecticut, Homer Babbidge Library
creatorOf African National Congress Collection., undated, 1993-1999. Archives & Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Center.
referencedIn The Simons papers, 1920-1965 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn South Africa: Political Parties Material, 1919- Institute of Commonwealth Studies
referencedIn Benson, Mary. Research material about the African National Congress, South Africa, 1961-1962. University of California, Los Angeles
referencedIn Archive of the Anti-Apartheid Movement, 1956-[ca. 1999] The Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House
referencedIn A.N.C. : V.I.P.'s of violence : video tape, undated Hoover Institution Archives
referencedIn Communist Party of the United States of America Audio Collection, Bulk, 1965-1989, 1920s - 1999 Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
referencedIn Papers of Mervyn Bennun, Late 20th century University of Exeter
referencedIn William Alphaeus Hunton papers, 1926-1967 Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Archives Section
referencedIn Paul Robeson collection, 1925-1956, 1943-1956 Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Archives Section
referencedIn Bam, Fikile C., 1937-,. Reminiscences of Fikile C. Bam : oral history, 1999. Columbia University in the City of New York, Columbia University Libraries
referencedIn Auden House and the South African Institute of Race Relations collections, 1936-1972 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn Papers of Howard Barrell, [1989-1993] The Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House
referencedIn Michael Young Papers, 1986-2001 Borthwick Institute for Archives, University of York
referencedIn Ford Foundation Study Group on Southern Africa. Records, 1984-1988. Temple University Libraries, Paley Library
referencedIn South Africa collection, 1990-2010, 1992-1996 Yale University. Department of Manuscripts and Archives
referencedIn Molema, Silas Modiri,. Silas Modiri Molema collection, 1914-1957 (inclusive), 1945-1952 (bulk), [microform]. Yale University Library
creatorOf African National Congress Papers, 1920-1976 Institute of Commonwealth Studies
referencedIn Michigan State University. Library. American Radicalism Collection. African National Congress : file of miscellanea. Michigan State University Libraries, Main Library
referencedIn Hunton, Alphaeus, 1903-1970. William Alphaeus Hunton papers, 1926-1967. Campbell University, Wiggins Memorial Library
referencedIn Champion, Allison Wessels George, 1975 School of Oriental and African Studies
referencedIn Mary Benson research material about the African National Congress, South Africa, 1961-1962 University of California, Los Angeles. Library Special Collections.
creatorOf African National Congress: Meeting with South African Business Delegates, 1985 Institute of Commonwealth Studies
referencedIn Globalvision, Inc. South Africa Now collection, 1978-1994 (inclusive), 1988-1991 (bulk). Yale University Library
referencedIn South African subject collection, 1910-2007. Stanford University, Hoover Institution Library
referencedIn Plaatje, Solomon Tshekisho, 1902-1932 School of Oriental and African Studies
creatorOf African National Congress. ANC notebooks [microform]. Center for Research Libraries, CRL
referencedIn Xuma, Alfred Bitini. Alfred Bitini Xuma papers, 1918-1960 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn A. N. C. : V. I. P.'s of violence : video tape, n.d. Stanford University, Hoover Institution Library
referencedIn Papers relating to the Exeter and District Anti-Apartheid Group, 1970s-early 1990s University of Exeter
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith A. B. Xuma Papers person
associatedWith ANC, African National Congress corporateBody
associatedWith Anti-Apartheid Movement person
associatedWith Bam, Fikile C., 1937-, person
associatedWith Bennun, Mervyn person
associatedWith Benson, Mary person
associatedWith Benson, Mary. person
associatedWith Bloom, Tony, fl 1985 person
associatedWith Colonial Born and Settlers' Indian Association corporateBody
associatedWith Communist Party of the United States of America. corporateBody
associatedWith De Beer, Zacharias Johannes, b 1928 person
associatedWith Exeter and District Anti-Apartheid Group corporateBody
associatedWith Federation of South African Women. corporateBody
associatedWith Ford Foundation Study Group on Southern Africa. corporateBody
associatedWith Gerhart, Gail M., person
associatedWith Globalvision, Inc. corporateBody
associatedWith Hani, Chris, b 1942 person
associatedWith Hunton, Alphaeus, 1903-1970. person
associatedWith Institute of Commonwealth Studies. corporateBody
associatedWith Joffe, J. G. person
associatedWith Jordan, Palo, fl 1985 person
associatedWith Kaunda, Kenneth David, b 1924 person
associatedWith Luthuli, A. J. (Albert John), 1898-1967. person
associatedWith Maharaj, Sathyandranath R (Mac), b 1931 person
associatedWith Matthews, Z. K. (Zachariah Keodirelang), 1901-1968. person
associatedWith Mbeki, Thabo, b 1942 person
associatedWith Molema, Silas Modiri, person
associatedWith Moss, Glenn, person
associatedWith Natal Indian Congress corporateBody
associatedWith O. R. Tambo person
associatedWith Professor Claire Palley person
associatedWith Relly, Gavin Walter Hamilton, b 1926 person
associatedWith Robeson, Paul, 1898-1976 person
associatedWith South African Indian Congress corporateBody
associatedWith South African Indian Organisation corporateBody
associatedWith South African Institute of Race Relations. corporateBody
associatedWith South African Passive Resistance Council corporateBody
associatedWith Stuart, James, fl 1985 person
associatedWith Tambo, Oliver, 1917-1993. person
associatedWith Tambo, Oliver Reginald, b 1917 person
associatedWith Transvaal Indian Congress corporateBody
associatedWith Treason Trial Defence Fund, South Africa corporateBody
associatedWith University of Fort Hare corporateBody
associatedWith University of the Witwatersrand corporateBody
associatedWith Xuma, Alfred Bitini. person
associatedWith Young, Michael Alan. OBE businessman person
Place Name Admin Code Country
South Africa
Transvaal
South Africa
South Africa
Province of Kwazulu-Natal
Subject
Asians
Justice, Administration of
Anti-apartheid
Anti-apartheid movement
Anti-apartheid movements
Apartheid
Blacks
Civil and political rights
Courts
Ethnic groups
Human rights
Indians
Inter-ethnic relations
Political parties
Political parties
Political prisoners
Racial discrimination
Racial prejudice
Racial segregation
Occupation
Political party
Activity

Corporate Body

Active 1993

Active 1999

South Africans

Multiple languages

Information

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Ark ID: w65j1qbf

SNAC ID: 60790410