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| Joe Slovo with Nelson Mandela |
Born as Yossel Mashel Slovo on 23 May 1926 in Obelai, Lithuania, Slovo’s journey to South Africa at the age of nine marked the beginning of his lifelong commitment to the working class and its struggles. His childhood hardships forced him to start working in a warehouse at the age of sixteen, where he encountered the harsh realities of capitalist exploitation.
He joined the South African Communist Party in 1942. Inspired by the Red Army's battles against the Nazis on the Eastern Front of World War II, Slovo volunteered to fight in the war. He served as a Signaler in combat operations for the South African forces in North Africa and Italy, and on his return to South Africa he joined the Springbok Legion, a multiracial radical ex-servicemen's organization.
Slovo joined the trade union to combat exploitation and advocate for a living wage and safe working conditions for workers. He became a shopfloor steward. He even led a workers’ strike, which, upon reflection, benefitted white workers more than all workers collectively. This experience deepened his understanding of the interconnectedness of national oppression, class exploitation and gender domination. He committed himself to fight against the systemic roots of these forms of oppression and others – the capitalist system.
Slovo became a key leader in both the SACP and the ANC. He also played a pivotal role in our joint liberation army, uMkhonto weSizwe, as one of its founding members and later Chief of Staff.
On 6 January 2025, the South African Communist Party organized a gathering in his memory.