Lillian Matabane Ngoyi | |
---|---|
Born | Lilian Masediba Matabane 25 September 1911 |
Died | 13 March 1980 | (aged 68)
Nationality | South African |
Other names | Ma Ngoyi |
Occupation | Politician |
Known for | [fighting apartheid and persistence] |
Lilian Masediba Matabane Ngoyi, "Mma Ngoyi", OMSG (25 September 1911 – 13 March 1980) was a South African anti-apartheid activist.[1][2][3][4] She was the first woman elected to the executive committee of the African National Congress, and helped launch the Federation of South African Women.
Prior to becoming a machinist at a textile mill, where she was employed from 1945 to 1956, Ngoyi enrolled to become a nurse.[5]
A sprinkling of holy water and a spray of champagne marked the naming of the first of South Africa's four new environmental protection vessels, the Lilian Ngoyi, in Cape Town harbour on Tuesday.
Lilian Ngoyi rose to prominence during the defiance campaigns of the 1950s and 1960s. She was one of the leaders of the 20 0000-women march to the Union Buildings in 1956 in protest against the pass laws.