South Africa
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Fatima Meer
Durban, South Africa
Archival Overview
Formidable anti-apartheid activist and sociologist who founded the Federation of South African Women, survived assassination attempts and bannings, and authored Mandela's first authorized biography.
Biographical Record
Fatima Meer was born on August 12, 1928, in Durban. In 1946, she mobilized youth during the Indian Passive Resistance Campaign, subsequently co-founding the Durban Coastal Indian Youth League.
A close comrade of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, Meer co-founded the Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW) in 1954, organizing the legendary 1956 Women's March against passes. As the first Black woman appointed as a sociology lecturer at a white South African university (University of Natal), she produced foundational research on urban poverty and indentured Indian history. Banned repeatedly and surviving an assassination attempt by apartheid agents in 1976, she authored Mandela's first authorized biography, Higher than Hope.
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Final Resting Place
Perpetual MemorialDurban, South Africa