THE RISE AND FALL OF THE ANC YOUTH LEAGUE

175pp., paperback, Cape Town, 2020

Political analyst Rebone Tau's history of the ANC Youth League: its formation in Soweto in 1944; the role played by early leaders such as Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and O.R. Tambo; the formation of the ANC Youth and Students Section in exile, first led by Thabo Mbeki; the return from exile in the 1990s and the leadership of Peter Mokaba; the controversies around the presidency of Julius Malema and his subsequent sacking; and the absence of Youth League leadership in the #FeesMustFall movement and current South African politics.

Rebone ‘Sankara’ Tau is a former member of the ANC Youth League National Task Team and is the chairperson of the Subcommittee on International Relations. She is a member of the ANC NEC International Relations Subcommittee and an associate of the Southern African Liaison Office (SALO). She currently works for the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation as programme manager for Political Affairs focusing on South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Her political opinion pieces have appeared in Daily Maverick, Mail & Guardian, The New Age and City Press.