Читать книгу Metal that Will not Bend - Kally Forrest - Страница 4

A lengthy book such as this inevitably means a long, and mostly solo, journey. Along the way however I met extraordinary and powerful people who lent me important support at different times.

The story of course belongs to the numerous people that I interviewed and their union colleagues. These soldiers of the metal unions freely shared with me their experiences, struggles, sufferings, victories, jubilations, thoughts and analyses of the unions’ role in the period they participated in. Their narratives and observations were astute and at times inspirational, even when it was painful for them to revisit such memories. For many, it was the first opportunity to return to these intense, exciting and fraught times, and for most it was an important moment. I feel honoured to have been part of this. These were, after all, people who richly contributed to creating a new democracy in South Africa and who assisted in forging critical worker rights and improved conditions and wages for thousands of racially oppressed and impoverished South Africans.

My thanks go to Numsa office bearers both past and present for setting me on a course of tracing a fascinating history of courageous and creative workers and officials who achieved an astounding amount in a very short period. Some of them gave particularly generously of their time. Numsa’s Jenny Grice deserves special mention for her invaluable assistance which, over the years, was given extensively and promptly.

I am also grateful to a number of academics. Sakhela Buhlungu originally encouraged me to write Numsa’s story and his assistance was critical in certain phases of writing while Glenn Adler continued to give enlightening input even after his departure to the US. My appreciation goes to Professor Phil Bonner who guided me back into an academic mode of thought and writing after years outside the field. His insights and suggestions on the structuring of the history gave it a manageable and readable shape.

The production of a book is never an author’s alone; numerous people are involved in its completion. In this regard I would like to thank Drew Forrest for doing an excellent job of reducing an overly long PhD, Monica Seeber for her careful editing and Lisa Aarons Platt whose layout made a dense manuscript into an attractive book.

Special thanks go to the photographers who have brought this book alive. These photos are of great historic interest, and some are of outstanding quality. Indeed many of the photographers – such as Cedric Nunn, Eric Miller, Anna Zieminski and Paul Weinberg – have gone on to become famous in their own rights. I owe a special debt to William Matlala for marking Numsa’s visual history over so many years.

I also thank the historical documents department of the University of the Witwatersrand for granting me access to many rich photos, and Lucia Mshake for her valuable research in unearthing photos from the Eastern Cape.

I should also like to express my gratitude to Numsa, to Atlantic Philanthropies and to the University of the Witwatersrand for their financial assistance which made this book possible.

My children, Robert and Alex, grew up as I laboured on this history, and Numsa became a household word. My deep gratitude goes to Melvyn who has given me friendship and support in numerous ways including feedback on the manuscript. And my thanks go to the many friends who gave me support along the way.

I owe a huge debt to the union movement for its nonracialism in action, for welcoming me as a person seeking change in South Africa. Workers have always warmly embraced my contribution, and I give this book back to them so that the story of their struggle in these critical years of South African history will never be forgotten.