“My spirit is not banned – I still say I want freedom in my lifetime.” These are the famous words, from her autobiography, appropriately inscribed onto a granite piece next to the bronze statue of Frances Baard in Kimberley.

Born on the 1st October 1909, Green Point (Kimberley) Mme Frances Goitsemang Baard was a domestic worker who later became an iconic trade unionist and worker’s champion. As a member of the ANC women’s league and SA congress of trade unions, she fought against apartheid and exploitation.

She was actively involved in drafting the Freedom Charter in 1955 and was one of the leaders of the 1956 women’s March to the Union Buildings in Pretoria against Pass Laws.

She was arrested a number times for her political activism and taken to solitary confinement for 12 months. She sadly passed on at age of 88 in 1997 in Mabopane.

Her legacy lives on.

In June 2001, the Diamantveld District Municipality was renamed in her name. Schoeman Street in Pretoria was also renamed in her honour although the (incorrect) spelling of her name on the street resulted in an uproar which her granddaughter and family have since cleared.

The street name, however, remains spelt as ‘Francis Baard’.

Remember the silent heroes.

Credit: Alchetron.com