Hector Pieterson

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 populations in South Africa, as the medium of instruction for all school subjects.

Hector Pieterson
Pieterson being carried by Mbuyisa Makhubo. His sister, Antoinette Sithole, runs beside them
Born(1963-08-19)August 19, 1963
Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa
DiedJune 16, 1976(1976-06-16) (aged 12)
Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa
Cause of deathGunshot wound
Resting placeAvalon Cemetery, Johannesburg, South Africa
Known forStudent killed during the Soweto uprising

The pupils 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.

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