In 2018, Cape Town Museum celebrated the 60th anniversary of Gugulethu with a recollection of the history of this township told through the eyes of its residents. We learn about the struggle history of Gugulethu, as well as current-day perspectives from academics, businesspeople, activists, and a new generation of young creatives.

"When people think of Gugulethu, they think about the killing of the Gugulethu Seven by the apartheid government in the 80s or they think about the murder of Amy Biehl. Gugulethu’s history holds much more than these two tragedies"

- Geoff Mamputa, Gugulethu resident and social activist.

A brief history

Gugulethu, or "Gugs" as it is popularly known, is a township/suburb about 15 kilometres outside the city centre of Cape Town. It was first established as a settlement for African migrant workers by the Cape Town City Council in 1958. The name "Gugulethu" is an abbreviation of "igugu lethu", which means "our pride" in Xhosa. It was chosen by the apartheid government that incorrectly spelt it 'Guguletu'. Before this, it was called Nyanga-West. Despite the poor housing and living conditions in Gugulethu, the population had grown to over 27 000 residents by 1963.

Residents of Gugulethu included African families who were forcibly removed from many different parts of the City of Cape Town under the Group Areas Act. Families that were resettled came from Windemere (approximately 753 families), Wittebome, Bo-Kaap, Retreat, District Six, and Simon’s Town. Once they arrived in Gugulethu, the settlement was divided up into sections that were designed so that people who had been removed from the same areas were grouped together. As Langa, Cape Town’s oldest township, become more and more crowded, some of its residents moved to Gugulethu. Migrant workers who came to Cape Town seeking work also often settled here in labour hostels. Here African men were forced to share single rooms with up to three men, with no housing provided for their families.

Despite harsh living conditions in Gugulethu, resident Jeff Mamputha reflects fondly on the diversity of cultures that the communities who were moved to Gugulethu brought with them. This includes rugby from Kensington, cricket from District Six, and ballroom dancing from Retreat.

Naming of streets

Instead of using street names as was the case in other Cape Town suburbs, the original streets in Gugulethu were labelled on a grid using NY or "Native Yard" and a number. Due to the offensive nature of this remnant of apartheid town planning, many people advocated for name changes for these streets. Authorities responded by renaming many roads including changing NY1 to Steve Biko Drive, as well as re-naming roads after Albert Luthuli, Amy Biehl, Ray Alexander, and the Gugulethu Seven. Not everyone agrees about the origin of this street naming system. Resident Jeff Mamputha believes that the "NY" was a way of differentiating the streets of Gugulethu (formerly Nyanga-West) from the original settlement of Nyanga (abbreviated to NY) in the east.

Challenges associated with crime

Crime remains a daily reality for Gugulethu's residents. They are faced with gangsterism, organised crime, extortion rings, and some of the highest rates of violent crime – including rape and murder – in the country. This serves as a vivid reminder of the remaining consequences of historical inequality and intergenerational poverty which are the lived realities of many South Africans.

Reclaiming Gugulethu

In recent years, Gugulethu has seen various developments including a boom in community tourism, entrepreneurship, a mall, and many successful community, youth, and women’s initiatives. Despite its difficult past, in 2018 Gugulethu residents and businesses celebrated 60 years since its founding. This celebration was named "Reclaiming Our Pride". Through a series of community events such as music concerts, a fashion show, and a project to collect the life histories of residents from Gugulethu, the people of Gugs celebrated their resilience, creativity, and successes.

Home to some notable people

Author, Sindiwe Magona, lived in NY74 after her family was moved from Retreat. She later studied at Columbia University and worked for the United Nations.

Gugulethu has also been home to many successful musicians including jazz saxophonists Winston Monwabisi Mankunku Ngosi, whose family was forcibly moved there from Retreat, and McCoy Mrubata, as well as jazz vocalist Donald (Don) Tshomela, who lived in NY65.

Mzoli Ngcawuzele’s family was moved to Gugulethu from Bo-Kaap. He founded Mzoli’s Place and Butchery which in 2003 started as a butcher shop operating from a garage. Mzoli's restaurant became a major attraction for both Capetonians and international visitors alike until May 2021 when it closed down.

Notable events

In 1976, three of Gugulethu's high schools - ID Mkize, Fezeka, and Cava -organised a march against the implementation of Afrikaans as a compulsory teaching language. They marched in solidarity with high school students in Soweto, but also for their own education. 

On 3 March 1986, seven young men - Mandla 'Baba' Simon Mxinwa, Jabulani 'Jabu’ Godfrey Miya, Themba 'Tshepo' Molefi, Christopher 'Rasta' Piet, Zola 'Mandela' Alfred Swelani, Zabonke 'Walk Tall' John Konile, and Zandisile 'Semi' Zenith Mjobo - were killed by police on the corner of NY1 (Steve Biko Drive) and NY111. The Gugulethu Seven, as they came to be known, were shot in the head after being tricked by undercover apartheid police into thinking that they were being recruited into the ANC’s armed wing, uMkonto weSizwe.

American graduate-student, Amy Biehl, was killed in an instance of mob violence in Gugulethu while on exchange from Stanford University with the University of the Western Cape's Community Law Centre on 25 August 1993. The four young men convicted of her murder were pardoned by the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Amy’s parents chose to engage with and forgive them. They helped to establish a foundation in her honour. Now called the Amy Foundation, this non-profit foundation "offers programmes which develop and empower youngsters, aged 5 – 35 years from challenged and vulnerable communities."

The girls’ and boys’ football teams of Lwazi Primary School were featured in the Oscar-winning movie "Invictus". Directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Matt Damon (as Francois Pienaar) and Morgan Freedman (as Nelson Mandela), the Lwazi teams were chosen because they had both won nearly every trophy in the Western Cape in their respective leagues. The players, along with their coach and maths teacher, Xolile Madikane, are a source of pride in the Gugulethu community. Some of the movie's scenes were shot on the school grounds.

Sources

Newspaper Articles

• Dano, Zodidi (2018) “Gugulethu Turns 60”. Cape Argus. 18 December.

• Unknown (2010) “City kids have the right stuff” Weekend Argus. Sunday 28 March 2010.

Online

• https://www.sahistory.org.za/place/gugulethu-township

• https://moguldom.com/69759/10-things-didnt-know-gugulethu/7/

• https://moguldom.com/69759/10-things-didnt-know-gugulethu/11/

• https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/Local/City-Vision/gugs-has-come-a-long-way-dont-burn-history-20180620

• https://moguldom.com/69759/10-things-didnt-know-gugulethu/9/

• https://moguldom.com/69759/10-things-didnt-know-gugulethu/8/

• https://www.vukaninews.co.za/news/gdf-seeks-to-collect-gugs-history-13980698

• https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/zapiro-makeba-biehl-among-gugs-street-names-1562833

• http://sabctrc.saha.org.za/reports/volume2/chapter3/subsection43.htm

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sindiwe_Magona