1985, the Langa Massacre and the ending of white rule in South Africa

429pp., paperback, UJ Press, Johannesburg, 2025

ISBN: 9781997468424

In his study of the massacre of 31 peaceful protestors on the streets of Langa township in the Eastern Cape town of Uitenhage on 21 March 1985, Mark Swilling argues that these killings, and the events that followed, tipped the balance of forces in favour of the mass struggles that brought an end to white minority rule when Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were released from prison in 1990.

The stories captured in this book, while specific to South Africa, are also of relevance to democratic movements confronting authoritarian regimes in an increasing number of countries around the world.

Professor Mark Swilling holds the South African Research Chair in Urban Innovations at the Centre for Sustainability Transitions, Stellenbosch University. He is also a Commissioner on the National Planning Commission in the Office of the President of South Africa, and a member of the Board of the National Transmission Company of South Africa. His most recent book was The Age of Sustainability: Just Transitions in a Complex World.