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City of Johannesburg MMC for Community Development, Cllr Nonhlanhla Sifumba, has unveiled a plaque that officially declared Mary Fitzgerald Square a heritage site.
Accompanying the good news was a launch of new and revamped head sculptures in Newtown. This was part of the Newtown Now Festival, a free one-day festival with performance arts, walking tours, exhibitions, creative workshops and family events.
“As a custodian of arts, culture, and heritage in the City, I was exceptionally proud to showcase to the diverse people of the city and visitors the rich culture and history of our city, and even more proud to show how we are preserving it for future generations,” she said.
MMC Sifumba highlighted the rich history of Mary Fitzgerald Square, going further to reveal that it was originally a wagon site that attracted many workers’ meetings and protests.
Those in attendance learned that it was in 1939 when the City Council named the site after activist, Mary Fitzgerald. She was an icon in her own right, being the first woman to hold public office in South Africa. Fitzgerald was lauded as a champion for women’s advancement as she went on to chalk up many ‘firsts’ for women in South Africa, including becoming the first woman trade unionist in the country, the first woman printer, and becoming the first woman town councillor.
According to MMC Sifumba, the launch of the head sculptures marked the completion of a project by the City’s Community Development Department to refurbish these much-loved public artworks. Many of these valuable pieces of art were damaged or went missing over the years.
This is indeed a good story to tell and showcases the cultural and historic melting pot Johannesburg’s inner city has to offer to culture aficionados.
