A documentary by Kethiwe Ngcobo
Lauretta Ngcobo was an author, novelist and essayist who offered a powerful insight into the lives and experiences of Black women living under apartheid in South Africa – despite spending much of her life in exile in London.
She wrote two novels, And They Didn’t Die and Cross of Gold, in which the oppression of women under apartheid was a central theme. Her work also explored how women were treated within Zulu culture. In one novel, the protagonist struggles to retain control over her life after killing a white soldier who attempts to rape her absent son’s wife.
Her views on the status of women led her and her husband to flee South Africa in 1963, eventually arriving in the UK in 1968. Here, she worked as a primary school teacher and later as acting head, campaigning tirelessly for a more diverse school curriculum. She was finally able to return home in 1994, when the ANC came to power.
Her story is remarkable – and someone who lived through it all was her daughter, Kethiwe, whose film this is. It offers an intimate portrait of growing up with a mother who gradually became an influential figure in Black politics.
Trade unionism is another central theme. Lauretta’s husband, A. B. Ngcobo, a trade union organiser, was imprisoned alongside Nelson Mandela on charges of treason. While in the UK, Lauretta also worked with the ‘Dagenham Wives’, who went on strike to protest against gender-based pay discrimination at the Ford car plant – a movement that led to the Equal Pay Act of 1970.
After returning to South Africa, she finally saw her novels published in her native country, and she continued campaigning and publishing essays until her death.
The film skilfully blends recollections and re-enactments from Lauretta Ngcobo’s life. It feels fitting that her daughter should be the one to tell this story – but there are also illuminating interviews and excerpts from Lauretta’s writing that complement the wider reflections on her legacy.
