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This research investigates the well-being of student activists involved in the 2015/16 protests, focusing on their experiences of trauma and vulnerability.

May 24, 2026Open Access

Aftermath: violence and well-being in the context of the student movement

Key Points

This research investigates the well-being of student activists involved in the 2015/16 protests, focusing on their experiences of trauma and vulnerability.
Interviews with student activists from the 2015/16 university protests conducted by HSRC researchers.
Analysis of students' narratives about their experiences during the protests and their aftermath.
Participants reported feeling deeply traumatized by their experiences during the protests.
The findings challenge the stereotype of student activists as either heroes or entitled individuals.

Abstract

In 2019, HSRC researchers interviewed student activists from the 2015/16 university protests as part of a project looking at higher-education governance and the problem of violent student protests. With student activists often depicted as either 'heroic warriors' battling against injustice or lazy or entitled 'thugs', the researchers were taken aback by what they found. The participants seemed vulnerable and deeply traumatised. Thierry Luescher spoke to Antoinette Oosthuizen about a photography project that gave these students a voice.

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