SOCIAL ACTIVIST

Hector Pieterson

1963 - 1976

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Zolile Hector Pieterson (19 August 1963 – 16 June 1976) was a South African schoolboy who was shot and killed at the age of 12 during the Soweto uprising and massacre in 1976, when the police opened fire on black students protesting the enforcement of teaching in Afrikaans, mostly spoken by the white and coloured population in South Africa, as the medium of instruction for all school subjects. The students wanted to learn in their native languages, Xhosa and Zulu. A news photograph by Sam Nzima of the mortally wounded Pieterson being carried by another Soweto resident while his sister ran next to them was published around the world. The anniversary of his death is the designated Youth Day in South Africa. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Hector Pieterson is the 752nd most popular social activist (down from 738th in 2019), the 302nd most popular biography from South Africa and the 13th most popular South African Social Activist.

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Among SOCIAL ACTIVISTS

Among social activists, Hector Pieterson ranks 752 out of 840Before him are Medea Benjamin, Samar Badawi, Lillian Ngoyi, Máxima Acuña, Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, and Inez Milholland. After him are Lina Ben Mhenni, Rouzan al-Najjar, Kumi Naidoo, Sarah Hegazi, Ayanda Denge, and Aqeela Asifi.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1963, Hector Pieterson ranks 869Before him are Jaime Ordiales, Adil Hussain, Catarina Lindqvist, Shin Joon-sup, Sanjay Mishra, and Christine Cavanaugh. After him are Torsten Albig, Philip Glenister, Melinda McGraw, Mary Scheer, Navjot Singh Sidhu, and Jay Karnes. Among people deceased in 1976, Hector Pieterson ranks 279Before him are Barbara Nichols, Anissa Jones, Victoria Spivey, Alastair Sim, Isidoro Sota, and Vera C. Bushfield. After him is Roger Livesey.

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In South Africa

Among people born in South Africa, Hector Pieterson ranks 302 out of 454Before him are Chanelle Scheepers (1984), Eudy Simelane (1977), Nick Price (1957), Mbulaeni Mulaudzi (1980), Jonathan Liebesman (1976), and Lillian Ngoyi (1911). After him are Kumi Naidoo (1965), Ayanda Denge (1982), Sibusiso Zuma (1975), Rosalyn Fairbank (1960), Joost van der Westhuizen (1971), and Zhang Jian (null).

Among SOCIAL ACTIVISTS In South Africa

Among social activists born in South Africa, Hector Pieterson ranks 13Before him are Devdas Gandhi (1900), Ramdas Gandhi (1897), Denis Goldberg (1933), Albertina Sisulu (1918), Beyers Naudé (1915), and Lillian Ngoyi (1911). After him are Kumi Naidoo (1965), Ayanda Denge (1982), Ayakha Melithafa (2002), and Nkosi Johnson (1989).