Histories of Anti-Apartheid Activism in Louisville

In 1985, the UofL Board of Trustees voted to divest from companies that invested in South Africa’s apartheid government. One of the first institutions of higher education in the region to do so, UofL’s action came after immense pressure from student groups, visible on-campus activism, and long-term community organizing to oppose apartheid. Although campus-based activism can sometimes be isolated from wider movements in our historical tellings, anti-apartheid organizing in Louisville was characterized by broad-based coalitions, grassroots mobilizations, and deep campus-community connections. As U.S. campus activism is again in the spotlight in 2024, with student occupations across the country calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, the question of how campus-community connections work to build movements for social justice is a critical topic for scholars to address.

Beginning in 2024, ABI-supported researchers began working to highlight the histories of the anti-apartheid movement in Louisville. Led by ABI faculty affiliate Dr. Tyler Fleming (Pan-African Studies & History), and with support by ABI Director Dr. Angela Storey (Anthropology), a team of undergraduate and graduate students is uncovering archival materials and identifying interviewees for the collection of oral histories.

Two graduate students have been working on this project: Philile Dlamini(MA, Political Science) is a graduate research assistant for the ABI and has been identifying archival materials related to federal policy actions related to calls for apartheid divestment. Yomi Ejikunle (PhD, Pan-African Studies) is working during the summer of 2024 on archival and library-based research on the project.

Two undergraduate students are conducted intensive archival and oral history research in the summer of 2024 on this project with the support of research funds from two universities: Emma Posey (BA, Pan-African Studies & Political Science) is a sophomore who received a Summer Research Opportunity fellowship from the UofL to support ten weeks of research this summer. Norah Laugher (BA, American Studies, Yale) is a junior from Yale University who received college funds to support expanding archival research skills over the summer by working in collaboration with the ABI.

This work will culminate in an exhibit in 2025, timed to the 40th anniversary of UofL’s decision to divest. Read more about this research in a College of Arts & Sciences story: https://louisville.edu/artsandsciences/news/all/uncovering-louisvilles-anti-apartheid-history-a-journey-through-time/

The photo below shows our 2024 summer undergraduate researchers, Emma Posey (left) and Norah Laughter (right).

Image below: Flyer for anti-apartheid rally in 1985, courtesy of Carla Wallace.