Projects & Programmes
Photographer: Jan Greshoff
Commemorations
Commemorations at District Six Museum
The work of the District Six Museum involves advocating for the significance of personal and collective memories in the lives of people. The public face of this finds expression through commemorative events and rituals.
Some of these follow the calendar of national commemorations which have been inaugurated during South Africa’s move towards democracy; others are specifically District Six-focused, being dates of events significant to the life of the community.
24 September,
Heritage Day
‘When our first democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.’
Heritage Day is celebrated on 24 September in South Africa. It is one of the national public holidays of the new South Africa, intended to acknowledge and celebrate the rich diversity of the country. The first celebration of Heritage Day was in1995.
The late President Nelson Mandela remarked: ‘When our first democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.’
The Museum’s celebrations of Heritage Day over the years have been rich and varied. Most have included site walks and site-specific public art interventions, often in partnership with other organisations. Most often the programme has been linked to a theme explored by the Museum during the course of the year.
Visit http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/first-celebration-national-heritage-day for more information about Heritage Day in South Africa
Please click on the link below to view various media associated with the Museum’s Heritage Day programmes over the years
