Ruth First and Joe Slovo in the War Against Apartheid

by Alan Wieder

"A gripping social history, a love song to the revolution, and a passionate and enlightening portrait of a partnership, a love-affair, and two extraordinary activists who cast their fates with the dreams of people everywhere for justice and freedom."
-Bill Ayers & Bernardine Dohrn

Ruth First and Joe Slovo, husband and wife, were leaders of the war to end apartheid in South Africa. Communists, scholars, parents, and uncompromising militants, they were the perfect enemies for the white police state. Together they were swept up in the growing resistance to apartheid, and together they experienced repression and exile. Their contributions to the liberation struggle, as individuals and as a couple, are undeniable. Ruth agitated tirelessly for the overthrow of apartheid, first in South Africa and then from abroad, and Joe directed much of the armed struggle carried out by the famous Umkhonto we Sizwe. Only one of them, however, would survive to see the fall of the old regime and the founding of a new, democratic South Africa. This book, the first extended biography of Ruth First and Joe Slovo, is a remarkable account of one couple and the revolutionary moment in which they lived. Alan Wieder's deeply researched work draws on the usual primary and secondary sources but also an extensive oral history that he has collected over many years. By weaving the documentary record together with personal interviews, Wieder portrays the complexities and contradictions of this extraordinary couple and their efforts to navigate a time of great tension, upheaval, and revolutionary hope.

Alan Wieder is an oral historian who lives in Portland, Oregon. He is distinguished professor emeritus at the University of South Carolina and has also taught at the University of the Western Cape and Stellenbosch University in South Africa. In the last ten years he has published two books and numerous articles on South Africans who fought against the apartheid regime.

Genres: Africa, Nonfiction, Biography, History, South Africa

464 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2013

About the author

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Reviews

[Dr. Corey Holmes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was amazing. Ruth First, ever the intellectual but vibrant and a true woman of the people. Slovo peaks the interest of militants with a just cause.

[Bert Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot here to appreciate: biographically about two rich, intense and meaningful lives - politically, about the legacy of communism and its role in ending apartheid - and historically, about a recent chapter in South Africa specifically and many colonized lands generally.

But it reads like a dissertation, which is deserved I suppose since the author is a professor. I was just looking for something a bit more digestible on the topics involved.

[Tafadzwa Kwaramba · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing style was painful to go through and having read other biographies, I think author could’ve paid more attention to his craft. That being said, the book itself does a great job at explaining the dynamics of Ruth and Joe as a duo and the author skillfully manages to still maintain their distinct attributes throughout the book. The book itself is largely dominated by the story of Ruth First and only after her demise does the character of Joe Slovo flourish within the context of the book. A few lessons of political theory are embedded within the book and the humanity of both characters shines throughout the book

[Leo Zeilig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wieder’s book is a triumph, describing Ruth First and Joe Slovo with compassion. The book will help, as he concludes, to ‘remind generations across the board, old and young, of the possibilities when courageous and brave individuals join together to fight oppression.’