What drives students to take to the streets, or in this case, their own campuses, to protest?
Around the world, student activism has been a powerful force for change, from resisting tuition fees to climate policy. In understanding the origin of these protests, the Rhodes Must Fall Movement is an essential movement that must be examined.
In 2015, students at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa raised something deeper: the ongoing legacy of colonialism in their university.
This was the beginning of Rhodes Must Fall, a staff- and student-led campaign which began with a single statue but grew into a broader fight against institutional racism and for decolonizing higher education.
Where It All Began
At the center of the initial protests was a statue of British colonist Cecil Rhodes, who played a central role in extending the British Empire into southern Africa. For students such as Avery, the statue was not just a piece of history: it was a reminder, day in and day out, of colonialism’s violence and inequality, and of how much had not yet changed in university culture.
The demand was to simply remove the statue. But the message ran deeper. Students saw Rhodes as a representation of the pervasive racism that still permeated the academic environment, from curriculum texts to leadership profiles to student services. As the movement gained momentum, it started pushing for more profound changes, such as improving living conditions for black students, and rethinking the Eurocentric lens through which knowledge was learned and valued.
How They Protested
The tactics of the movement were revolutionary, and sometimes controversial. It started with a student throwing human feces at the Rhodes statue, a move as surprising as it was metaphorical. It created campus-wide controversy and brought about a spate of demonstrations.
One of the most symbolic protests was on March 12, 2015, when students took over the Bremner building, a large administrative building at UCT. They occupied it for a few days, turning it into a site of resistance where supporters brought food, and racism and reform discussions were top of mind.
Future demonstrations had bolder actions, such as burning paintings of white people, setting vehicles on fire, and even petrol-bombing offices. They earned national television and newspaper publicity and sparked intense debate across the nation about protest vs. violence.
What Did They Accomplish?
The most prominent and symbolic victory of the movement was the removal of the Rhodes statue at UCT. To students and most of its supporters, it was an act of symbolic acknowledgment and accomplishment. But its impact did not stop there.
The movement was mirrored in other institutions, such as the University of Oxford itself, where students also began calling for the removal of their own Rhodes statue. Although the college authorities of Oxford initially complied, in the end, the statue was not removed.
However, the conversation had been started. The movement helped shift the topic of institutional racism and decolonization onto national and global conversation, illustrating how student activism can challenge the status quo and create lasting impact, even if not all of the demands are met.
The Moral of the Story?
The Rhodes Must Fall Movement is a testament to the power of collective action, and the impact students can have when they demand change. Thus, as youth, it is important that we advocate for the issues important to us, no matter how deep-rooted they appear to be.
Sources
https://globalcapitalism.history.ox.ac.uk/files/case31-rhodesmustfallpdf
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/mar/16/the-real-meaning-of-rhodes-must-fall
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodes_Must_Fall#:~:text=Rhodes%20Must%20Fall%20was%20a,decolonise%22%20education%20across%20South%20Africa.