Black People's Convention

The BPC was an outgrowth of the Black Consciousness movement in South Africa, which gained traction in the early 1970s and increasingly became a major alternative source of ideological and organisational support for resistance to the system of apartheid.

With the influence of the South African Students' Organisation (SASO) growing, Black Consciousness leaders called for the formation of a new Black Consciousness political organisation to engage and mobilise broader civil society, outside the universities.

At its first national congress in December 1972, held in Hammanskraal, Winnie Kgware was elected its first president.

[5] The BPC collaborated with other Black Consciousness organisations, such as SASO, with whom its membership overlapped significantly.

It also advocated for an equitable economic system based on socialism and what it called "black communalism".

On 19 October 1977, sometimes known as "Black Wednesday", 18 organisations, including the BPC and SASO, were banned by the apartheid government.