The 500 Windows Campaign: A Case Study of a Youth Movement for Educational Resources in South Africa

Abstract

Author(s): Angara, Harini | Abstract: This case study seeks to examine what organizing methods and ethos helped Equal Education (EE), a community-based youth organization, convince government officials to repair 500 broken windows at Luhlaza School in Khayelitsha, an impoverished township near Cape Town, South Africa. Through various methods, including petitions, op-ed articles, and a rally, the group succeeded in its campaign. EE takes inspiration from apartheid-era youth movements. In the burgeoning democracy of the New South Africa, EE constitutes the next generation of youth civic engagement.