Noël Robb

Ruth Noël Robb (born Barrow on 25 December 1913 - January 2009)[1] was a South African activist and member of the Black Sash.

Biography

Robb was born in Plymouth on 25 December 1913.[2] Robb most often went by her middle name, Noël.[3] She graduated from Bedford College in 1935 or 1936 and after college, got a job working in Cape Town at St. Cyprians School.[2][3] She worked at St. Cyprians School for four years.[3] She married Francis Charles Robb in December 1939 and he wanted her to stay at home and raise children, which she did.[4] The couple had five children and Robb continued to do philanthropic work.[3]

Robb graduated from the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 1973 with a Bachelor of Arts.[5] She later earned an honorary masters degree in social science from UCT in 1994.[6]

Robb died in Cape Town in January 2009.[7]

Activism

Robb was one of the original founding members of Black Sash, starting in 1955 when it was still called The Women's Defence of the Constitution League.[8][9] She didn't want black South Africans to lose the right to vote, so she was motivated to stay involved.[10] She remained a member for more than 40 years.[8]

In 1956, Robb led a mass march to Cape Town, protesting changes to the Constitution.[3] Robb ran the Black Sash Advice Office in Cape Town which was founded in 1958.[11] This office helped black women deal with legal issues created by apartheid, as well as other types of problems they may have faced.[3] After the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, Robb and other women brought supplies to people in the area and also helped people visit loved ones in prison.[3] After the creation of Khayelitsha, Robb would visit residents of the segregated area and was known as "Mama Robb, Black Sash."[3]

In March 1989, she was elected as lifetime Vice President of Black Sash.[12] In 2006, she published a memoir, The Sash and I: A Personal Memoir and a Tribute to the Black Sash.[13][7]

References

  1. ^ "Nöel Robb". South African History Online. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  2. ^ a b MacLean 2004, p. 87.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Pruitt, Jarvis. "Ruth Robb and her involvement with Black Sash". South African History Online. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  4. ^ MacLean 2004, p. 87-88.
  5. ^ Theron, Helen (26 January 2009). "Passing of Noël Robb". University of Cape Town. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  6. ^ "Honorary Degrees Awarded". University of Cape Town. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  7. ^ a b Joseph, Natasha (23 January 2009). "Leading Black Sash Anti-pass Law Activist Dies at Age of 95". Cape Times. Retrieved 24 January 2019 – via Pressreader.
  8. ^ a b "Noël Robb - South African Women Activists Celebrated". Southafrica.co.za. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  9. ^ "25 Years After Sharpeville - Nothing Has Changed". The Age. 19 March 1985. p. 8. Retrieved 24 December 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ MacLean 2004, p. 88.
  11. ^ MacLean 2004, p. 89.
  12. ^ "Noel Robb (d. 2009)". Black Sash. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  13. ^ Robb, Noël (2006). The Sash and I: A Personal Memoir and a Tribute to the Black Sash. Noël Robb. ISBN 978-0-620-36450-8.
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