Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1982 (Creation)
Level of description
Subseries
Extent and medium
9 pages
Context area
Name of creator
Administrative history
The Medu Art Ensemble was formed by South Africa exiles in Gaborone, Botswana, in 1978. The organisation produced a wealth of creative work across all major art-forms; the roup further played a key role in shaping aesthetic and cultural theory and praxis within Africanist and liberation struggles. On June 14 1985, the South African Defence Force attacked the homes of Medu members and other activists in Gaborone, killing 12 people; Medu as an organisation ceased to exist.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
In this paper, Keorapetse Kgositsile argues that art and culture play a role in the struggle against Apartheid. Kgositsile, a poet and acclaimed writer, regards literature as being a key site of struggle. He suggests that literature "must serve the interests of the people in their fight against a culture which insists that they should be robbed". Kgositsile reflects on the contributions of literature to the struggle which he believes are both artistic and "functional" to the needs of the people.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Permission to publish must be obtained from the Medu Art Ensemble Project.