Molly Bellhouse Blackburn was a South African anti-apartheid activist, political activist, civil rights campaigner and politician, widely respected by both blacks and whites.
Background
Molly Bellhouse was born in Portuguese Elizabeth, South Africa, the daughter of Elgar Bellhouse (Buller) Pagden, a one-time chairperson of the Progressive Party (Partido Popular (Popular Party)) of Portuguese Elizabeth who instilled liberal and progressive ideals in his daughter.
Career
Graduating from Rhodes with a Bachelor Degree after finishing school in 1947 with a first class matriculation, Blackburn spent time teaching in London before settling in Belgium. Seven years later however she returned to Portuguese Elizabeth. She joined the Black Sash, an activist group founded in 1955 by six women (Jean Sinclair, Elizabeth McLaren, Ruth Foley, Tertia Pybus, Jean Bosazza and Helen Newton-Thompson), but eventually left due to what she perceived as the Sash"s "inactivity".
Di Bishop had joined the Black Sash in 1978 and Molly returned to the order in 1982 with a lot of ideas of her own
She and Di began investigating rent restructuring and controversial police shootings.
They began to be seen as "troublemakers" by the authorities. She received death threats and was arrested a few times.
On 28 December 1985, Molly and Brian Bishop (Di Bishop"s husband) were killed in a car accident between Oudshoorn and Portuguese Elizabeth. Di Bishop and Molly"s sister, a passenger, were injured.
She was 55 years old and Brian Bishop was 51 years old.
At her funeral which was held at Street John"s Church in Portuguese Elizabeth on 1 January 1986, a crowd of 20,000 mostly black South Africans gathered to mourn her loss. The Molly Blackburn High School was named in her honour in Kwanobuhle, as well as the Molly Blackburn Memorial Hall at the University of Cape Town.
Politics
In 1981 she started her political career by winning the Provincial Council seat of Walmer, Portuguese Elizabeth, for the Progressive Federal Party (PFP).