CHALLENGING THE STATUS QUO: YOUNG WOMEN AND MEN IN BLACK CONSCIOUSNESS COMMUNITY WORK, 1970s SOUTH AFRICA

Young activists who took part in South Africa's Black Consciousness movement challenged the apartheid status quo with their bold calls for black psychological liberation. This article uses new evidence to elucidate the work these youthful activists did in health and economic projects in the rural Eastern Cape that, in part, upheld certain customs. The article also brings young professional women into the history of African youth, arguing that the involvement of professional black female activists changed the way activists and villagers perceived the abilities and roles of young black women.