Today, June 11, marks the celebration of a true giant of the anti-apartheid Struggle, Molefe Pheto, as he turns 90. The highly esteemed, affable nonagenarian is a renowned South African musician, teacher, and activist.
Born on June 11, 1935, in Alexandra Township, Johannesburg, Pheto has had a remarkable life dedicated to waging an anti-racist struggle and promoting black consciousness philosophy of self-love and reliance and black solidarity.
He has lived to the brim of what Nina Simone believed was “an artist’s duty, as far as I am concerned, to reflect the times”. Simone’s position is that it is the frontline responsibility of artists to express the realities and struggles of the world around them. Pheto has been the true walk of that Simone talk. The joy of it is that, even at 90, he has not retired to live by that dictum.
As was said by Nelson Mandela, the same literally holds for Pheto: “Our bodies may give in to the force of age but the dreams that lie in our hearts may not retire.”
Pheto grew up in Alexandra Township and later became a teacher in Soweto, fully aware of the inferiorization intent of Bantu Education from inception in 1953. Performance of duty to teach was not without the conscientisation programme of Black Consciousness.
The same applied with fellow artists. It is no wonder that pictures hanging on walls of the acclaimed Regina Mundi Church were those of black angels by Fikile Magadlela.
This was not different to musician Roberta Flack asking why artists did not paint angels black in a her song Angelitos Negros. The song was inspired by a Venezuelan poem by Andres Elon Blanco which criticises racial discrimination. Roberta’s Angelitos Negros was an adaptation from Blanco’s poem.
Rendering this song, Roberta Flack transfigured into an angel herself, calling all the black angels to unify and testify to the truth of their being.
No harm or offence is intended to quote the stanzas of the Poem by Andres Eloy Blanco in full:
“Painter born in my land
With the brush of a foreigner
Painter who followed the direction
From so many painters of old
Even if the virgin is white
Paint little black angels for me
Since the blacks who are good people
Also go to heaven
Painter if you paint with love
Why do you despise their color
If you know that in heaven
God also loves them
Painter of saints and altars
If you have a soul in your body
Why, when painting those paintings
Did you forget about the blacks
Whenever you painted churches
you painted beautiful little angels
But you never remembered
Why, when painting those paintings
Did you forget about the blacks
Whenever you painted churches
You painted beautiful angels
But you never remembered
To paint a black angel
Even if the virgin is white
Paint little black angels for me
Since they also go to heaven
All the little angels, little angels, little angels
Black
la la la
la la la
la la la la la la la la la la la…”
Pheto ranks amongst artists in the mold of Nina Simone and Roberta Flack. He has, for over five decades, 54 years to be exact, been an active member of the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) and founded the Music, Drama, Arts, and Literature Institute (MDALI). MDALI is one of the 17 Black Consciousness organisations banned on October 19, 1977 within 35 days of Steve Biko’s assassination in police custody on September 12, 1977.
In 1975, Pheto was himself detained under South Africa’s Terrorism Act for 10 months. He went into exile in 1977, joining the Black Consciousness Movement of Azania in 1980.
During his time in exile, he wrote his memoir, “And the Night Fell,” which was published in 1983 and banned in South Africa. Pheto published his second book, “The Bull from Moruleng: Vistas of Home and Exile,” in 2014, reflecting on his experiences during the liberation struggle.
To mark his 90th birthday, a celebration will be held at Soweto Theatre on July 18, 2025, featuring a program of music, art, and performances. A precursor to celebrations of Molefe Pheto will be held at his farm in Bangadile, Magalies on Wednesday June 11, 2025.
The event is organized by the Molefe Pheto@90 Project, led by co-convenors Dr. Nape Motana and Mmagauta Molefe, with poet Boitumelo Mofokeng as project coordinator.
Pheto’s life has been marked by his determination to fight for freedom and his contributions to South African arts and culture.
His legacy continues to inspire new generations of artists, activists, and leaders. Pheto has without doubt performed his duties as an artist to the full.
