In 1996, September 24th was established as Heritage Day.
This date was chosen based on the celebration of Shaka Day by the KwaZulu-Natal region. Zulu King Shaka played an important role in uniting the Zulu tribes.
When this date was officially made a national holiday, Nelson Mandela stated
“When our first democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.
We did so knowing that the struggles against the injustice and inequities of the past are part of our national identity; they are part of our culture. We knew that, if indeed our nation has to rise like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes of division and conflict, we had to acknowledge those whose selfless efforts and talents were dedicated to this goal of non-racial democracy.”
I personally like the second paragraph where “the injustice and inequities are of the past are part of our nation identity”.
What is done on National Heritage Day? Braai of course! A braai is a grill or to grill. So today is the day to break out the braai, fill it with meats, and have family and friends together to celebrate the country’s heritage.
