By the spring of 1987, Harvard had sold most of its stocks and bonds in Texaco, Shell, Mobil, and Ford, cutting its investments in South Africa nearly in half.
The move reduced Harvard’s South Africa-linked holdings to their lowest level since 1983.
The decision was partly due to pressure from the activist community, Treasurer of the University Roderick M. MacDougall ’51 said at the time.
Although activists insisted it was not enough, Harvard’s decision to selectively divest from companies in 1987 “[took] a toll” on the student movement, said Orenstein in 1987 to the Crimson.
“I would say that South Africa as an issue was sort of fading,” said Brooke A. Masters ’89, a reporter for the Crimson who covered the Duke-Kent protest. “Harvard had done the obvious thing to do.”
By May of 1987, University President Derek C. Bok asserted that divestment activism had declined, an observation that was affirmed by a spokesman for SASC. “A lot of intellectuals are rethinking if divestment is responsible,” said Orenstein to the Crimson at the time.
LIFE AFTER HARVARD
Just seven years after the Class of 1987 marched at Commencement—crossing the very ground where the shantytown had stood the year before—Nelson Mandela was elected President of South Africa. For student activists, this was a monumental milestone that helped to validate their efforts at the College.
“It was a tremendous joy to see Mandela’s election,” Ross said. “I’m guessing that all of us felt like we had made a small contribution to that.”
Thomas J. Winslow ’87 did not participate in the protests at the time, aside from visiting the shantytown in Harvard Yard once to watch an educational video. After graduation, however, he moved to South Africa, where he witnessed the South African Air Force flying a salute to the newly-inaugurated president in 1994.
Looking back, he recognized the powerful role student activism played in the anti-apartheid movement.
“It simply could not have been done without the international solidarity movement working closely with democratic forces inside South Africa,” said Winslow. “I now appreciate the role of student activists and the international solidarity movement much, much more than I did at the time.”
After graduating, Grossman traveled to South Africa several times, allowing him to observe the country’s transition.
“It’s very fulfilling to know you are on the right side of history,” Grossman said.
—Staff writer David W. Kaufman can be reached at davidkaufman@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Michael C. George can be reached at mgeorge@college.harvard.edu.