The Free South Africa Movement (FSAM) was a coalition of individuals, organizations, students, and unions across the United States of America who sought to end

Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. With local branches throughout the country, it was the primary anti-Apartheid movement in the United States. Famous artists also got involved including Keith Haring who handed out over 20,000 'Free South Africa' posters.

Formation

The movement began on 21 November 1984 when

Randall Robinson Randall Robinson (born July 6, 1941) is an African-American lawyer, author and activist, noted as the founder of TransAfrica. He is known particularly for his impassioned opposition to apartheid, and for his advocacy on behalf of Haitian immig ...

, executive director of

TransAfrica TransAfrica (formerly ''TransAfrica Forum'') is an advocacy organization in Washington, D.C. that seeks to influence the foreign policy of the United States concerning African and Caribbean countries and all African diaspora groups. They are a re ...

Mary Frances Berry Mary Frances Berry (born February 17, 1938) is an American historian, writer, lawyer, activist and professor who focuses on U.S. constitutional and legal, African-American history. Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Tho ...

, Commissioner of the

United States Commission on Civil Rights The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (CCR) is a bipartisan, independent commission of the United States federal government, created by the Civil Rights Act of 1957 during the Eisenhower administration, that is charged with the responsibility fo ...

, D.C. Congressman

Walter Fauntroy Walter Edward Fauntroy (born February 6, 1933) is an American pastor, civil rights activist, and politician who was a delegate to the United States House of Representatives and a candidate for the 1972 and 1976 Democratic presidential nomination ...

, and

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

law professor

Eleanor Holmes Norton Eleanor Holmes Norton (born June 13, 1937) is an American lawyer and politician serving as a delegate to the United States House of Representatives, representing the District of Columbia since 1991. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Ea ...

met with South African Ambassador Bernardus Gerhardus Fourie at his embassy to highlight

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

abuses in South Africa. They demanded the release of

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

s and refused to leave the embassy by staging a sit-in, which led to the arrest of Robinson, Fauntroy and Berry. Norton was not arrested because she was addressing the media outside of the embassy, which had been notified beforehand. The sit-in was planned for Thanksgiving Eve to ensure wide press coverage. Thereafter, Trans-Africa organized daily protests outside the embassy. These protests helped create the FSAM. Robinson's organization,

, was a founding member of FSAM and played a key role in its development. As a coalition of unionists and anti-apartheid groups, the organization protested in front of the South African Embassy, leading to 5,000 Americans being arrested. The FSAM had three major objectives: (1) build awareness among the American general public of apartheid through a strategy of civil disobedience and demonstrations that elicited media coverage, (2) begin a change in the U.S. policy of constructive engagement toward South Africa, and (3) influence other Western countries to follow suit once American policy has changed.

Anti-Apartheid protests

After the formation of FSAM, demonstrations at South African consulates continued. Following the demonstration at the South African Embassy, universities across the country mobilized anti-apartheid protests. "Black Student Movement" protests occurred in both historically black colleges and universities and majority-white institutions, including Ohio State University and George Washington University. Within one year, more than 4,500 arrests followed, and local branches of FSAM formed in cities across the country.

Significance

The combined leadership of FSAM, TransAfrica and the

Congressional Black Caucus The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is a caucus made up of most African-American members of the United States Congress. Representative Karen Bass from California chaired the caucus from 2019 to 2021; she was succeeded by Representative Joyce B ...

together with the commitment of private citizens around the country led to the passage of the

Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act The Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act of 1986 was a law enacted by the United States Congress. The law imposed sanctions against South Africa and stated five preconditions for lifting the sanctions that would essentially end the system of apart ...

. Many European countries followed suit by enacting their own sanctions. FSAM is arguably the most important and successful initiative undertaken by black private citizens since the

Civil Rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

. It expanded the influence of African Americans in forming US.. foreign policy.

References

{{Reflist Anti-Apartheid organisations National liberation movements Boycotts of apartheid South Africa Legal history of the United States United States foreign relations legislation International opposition to apartheid in South Africa South Africa–United States relations International sanctions

Formation

Anti-Apartheid protests

Significance

See also

References