Pixley seme towards a biography

(October 1, 1881 - 1951)

Political Up, Lawyer and Journalist

Pixley Seme was born on 1 Oct 1881 in Natal. He was the son of Isaka Seme and his wife, Sarah (nee Mseleku). He obtained his first education at the local reserve school where the American Protestant missionary, Reverend S.

C. Pixley, took an interest in him and arranged for him ploy go the Mount Hermon Grammar in Massachusetts in the Army. He then attended Colombia Sanatorium in New York and even with a Bachelor of Study degree (B.A) in April 1906. At the same time settle down won the University's highest eloquent honour, the George William Botanist medal.

His topic was “The Regeneration of Africa”. With budgetary assistance from missionaries, he entered Jesus College, Oxford in England, where he read law layer September 1906. In June 1909 he gained a Bachelor's level in Civil Law and passed his first bar examinations. Greatness following year he was styled to the Bar at magnanimity Middle Temple, London.

While throw in Britain, Seme and Alfred Mangena, met at the South Mortal Native Convention that had move there to monitor the administer of the draft South Continent Act through the British senate in 1909. Seme later supposed to be a nephew fall for Umqawe, one of the uttermost powerful chiefs of Zululand, on the other hand a conflicting opinion seemed contact suggest that he came overexert a humble Tonga family.

Salvage in South Africa in 1910, Seme set up private apply in Johannesburg, later going arrive at partnership with Mangena.

On 8 January 1912 Seme, Mangena tell off two other foreign-educated lawyers, Richard Msimang and George Montsio, alarmed for a convention of Africans to form the South Continent Native National Congress (SANNC), which was renamed the African Formal Congress (ANC) in 1923, envisage Bloemfontein. One hundred delegates guileful its inaugural meeting, where Seme was the keynote speaker.

Watch over Seme's suggestion the new arrangement was patterned after the Leagued States Congress. Reverend John Langalibalele Dube was elected as dismay first president (in absentia), obtain Seme became the Treasurer-General.

Become apparent to financial assistance from the Empress regent of Swaziland, Seme embark upon the SANNC newspapers, Abantu Batho, which was to be in print for the next 20 grow older.

The paper had a nation-wide circulation and was printed replace Zulu, Xhosa, Sotho and To one\'s face. In 1913 Seme established picture South African Native Farmers Thresher, which bought the Daggakraal near Driefontein farms in the Wakkerstroom district in Transvaal. They would have bought more farms on the contrary were impeded by the Citizenry Land Act of 1913 which made it illegal for Africans to buy farms in description Transvaal.

Seme, like Mangena, locked away many distinguished Africans among queen clients, including the royal next of kin of Swaziland.

In 1926 explicit travelled with the Swazi Sovereign, Sobhuza II, to England be given appeal a land dispute be against South Africa where Seme proposed the King before the Clandestine Council.

In 1928 his stature was further enhanced when Colombia University, his alma mater, awarded him an Honorary Doctorate uphold Law (LLD).

In the accumulate 1920s Josiah Gumede, then ethics ANC President-General, attempted to guide the organisation towards an union with Communist Party of Continent (today the South African Pol Party). This alarmed Seme settle down other conservatives in the organization.

Seme was subsequently elected President-General at the 1930 annual ANC congress, ousting Gumede by efficient vote of 39 to 14.

Seme's attempts to transform loftiness ANC into an organization forfeiture economic self-help proved fruitless, kind did his attempt to put a spark in the defunct House of Chiefs in the ANC. Both reward enemies and supporters accused him of ‘culpable inertia' in 1932 and criticized his autocratic bear cautious leadership style. Reverend Notice.

Mahabane replaced him as President-General in 1937. At about magnanimity same time his newspaper, Abantu Batho, declined in popularity illustrious closed down.

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By 1935 Pixley Seme and other workers of the ANC had agree with aware of the need roughly coordinate the African opposition give somebody the job of the Hertzog Bills. Seme wed Professor D.D.T. Jabavu in assemblage the first meeting of depiction All African Convention (AAC) doubtful Bloemfontein in 1935. He subsequent turned against the AAC, on the other hand maintained ties with the ANC, serving as 'secretary for justness chiefs' in A.B.

Xuma 's first national executive committee away the early 1940s. Seme too served as a member neat as a new pin the African Claims Committee sum 1943.

Anton M. Lembede, goodness first president of the Session Youth League (CYL), was unfree to him as a alteration clerk in 1943, and intimate 1946 they became partners.

Seme was married to Harriet, pure daughter of King Dinuzulu understanding Zululand. They had four successors and one daughter. He in a good way in Johannesburg in 1951.

Uncomprehending from:

Sonderling, N. E. (1999). The new dictionary of Southerly Africa biography Volume 2, Horizon University, Pretoria, pp.205 – 206.

This biography is non-native South African History Online.

Threadbare by permission.