01
Miriam Makeba
1930sWhy they matter
Miriam Makeba sang South African song to the world from exile, and her stand against apartheid kept her from home for about thirty years.
In 1960 she travelled abroad and was barred from returning, even for her mother's funeral. After she spoke against apartheid at the United Nations, South Africa stripped her citizenship and banned her records. She came home in 1990, and the world knew her as Mama Africa.