Rhodes Must Fall activist Mbalenhle Matandela earns Rhodes Trust scholarship
Matandela works at the Centre for Applied Legal Studies at Wits and her honours research focused on experiences of black women in the Rhodes Must Fall movement
The paradox of being a Rhodes Must Fall activist and a Rhodes scholar-elect is not lost on Mbalenhle Matandela‚ but she believes being in this unique position can help her do good. Matandela and fellow Rhodes Must Fall activist Joshua Nott are among nine South Africans awarded scholarships of R670‚000 each by the Rhodes Trust‚ to join Oxford University later this year. Both were involved in the 2015 protests at the University of Cape Town (UCT)‚ calling for a statue of Cecil John Rhodes to be removed from its prominent place on campus. Matandela‚ who knows Nott from their time as students at UCT‚ said she regarded the scholarship as an opportunity to learn more about the African diaspora and further her other intellectual interests. Matandela will register for an MPhil in development studies when the academic year begins at the end of September‚ hoping to engage in a gendered analysis of development on the African continent. She currently works for the University of the Witwatersran...
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