16/06/2026
June 1976 and the Catholic Church -
This year marks 50 years since the student uprising of June 16, 1976 in Soweto. In this short excerpt from a larger article, Daluxolo Moloantoa looks at the role the Catholic Church played in that time.
It is one of the most striking images of the aftermath of the Soweto Uprising of 16 June 1976: Fr Buti Tlhagale OMI of Regina Mundi church leading a funeral procession in Soweto as hundreds follow behind him from the church towards Avalon cemetery, the deceased transported on a horse-drawn cart.
As South Africa commemorates the 50th anniversary of that historic day, the memory of the youth who stood unarmed before police Casspirs and bullets remains etched in the nation's soul. Among them was Hector Pieterson, whose death became a symbol of sacrifice and injustice.
But intertwined with this story of youthful courage is another: the witness of the Church — priests, religious and lay faithful — who refused to remain silent in the face of oppression.
The condensed version of this article: https://www.scross.co.za/2026/06/june-1976-and-the-catholic-church/
Read the full article in the Southern Cross June issue...
