There were no marching bands or official ceremonies. Instead, the Freedom Alliance political outfit’s youth wing marked the Day of the African Child with a deeply symbolic gathering in Bulawayo, sharing meals, sparking dialogue, and reflecting on the weight of African youth struggles, past and present.
Held in the city centre, the event prioritised connection over formality, with participants discussing unemployment, education, cultural identity, and economic exclusion.
The gathering culminated in an official statement that drew sharp parallels between the 1976 Soweto Uprising and the battles facing young Africans today.
Freedom Alliance youth leader Calvin Wiseman Dube recalled how black schoolchildren in apartheid South Africa defied the imposition of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction on 16 June 1976.
“All hell broke loose on 16 June 1976, when Black schoolchildren had no option but to resist that cultural subjugation and take to the streets. Their protest was met with live bullets,” Dube said.
He said the Day of the African Child honoured sacrifices made by young people across the continent and serves as an enduring symbol of resistance against oppression.
Dube also referenced Zimbabwe’s liberation history, citing massacres at Mkushi, Freedom Camp, and Nyadzonia as painful reminders of the price paid by young freedom fighters.
The youth leader argued that Africa’s future remains inextricably tied to the empowerment of its youth.
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“This is the reality facing every young African today, as the continent continues to bleed its economic resources to Chinese, American, British, Indian, and other European companies,” he said.
The youth stressed the urgent need to preserve African languages and cultural identity, which they said remain under threat in modern society.
Dube urged young people to continue advancing the struggle for justice and self-determination, despite the odds.
“It was never easy in the past, and it is not easy now. But youths have always stood up and advanced the cause of justice,” he said.
