Mary Malahele-Xakana was the first black woman to register as a medical doctor in South Africa, as well as a founding member of the Young Women's Christian Association.
Background
Mary Susan Makobatjatji Malahlela was born in Pietersburg. Her father was Thadius Chweu Malahlela, a Christian convert. Her father had been driven from his home for refusing to put his twin children to death, since twins were considered a curse.
Education
She attended the University of Fort Hare as an undergraduate, and in 1941 received support from the Native Trust Fund to study medicine at the University of Witwatersrand.
Career
As a girl she was a student at the Methodist Primary School in Juliwe, near Johannesburg. In 2015 the University of Witwatersrand erected a plaque on its grounds as a memorial to Doctor Malahlela and as a way to redress the historical diminution of native black alumni. In 1947, Malahlela graduated from medical school and registered as a medical doctor, the first black woman in South Africa to do southern
She opened a private medical practice in Kliptown, and a second in Mofolo South.
After the Group Areas Acting, she worked at the clinic in Dobsonville.
Membership
Mary Malahlele-Xakana was a founding member of the Young Women’s Christian Association in South Africa, and active in the peace and anti-apartheid movements. She was a member of the Women"s Peace Movement, a member of the Fort Hare University Council, and a chairwoman of the Roodepoort School Board.