When Lions Roared: How Brave Young People Defied Apartheid

On a winter’s day in 1968, in a town in South Africa, a nineteen-year-old medical student changed the course of his country’s history. Steve Biko’s philosophy of Black Consciousness would inspire thousands of black students to demand an equal education. In this wide-ranging history and analysis, Manju Soni melds her own personal history with the growth of the youth movement against apartheid. She chronicles that movement’s evolution from the sporadic protests of the Soweto Uprising, to the emergence of a national youth movement with over a million members. Delving deep into the archives of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, she profiles in chilling detail the individuals in the apartheid government who made assassination a key tool of state policy. This story captures the power and desire of young black South Africans to become the agents of change. It is essential reading for readers of all ages, regardless of race.