Sharpeville massacre

March 21, 1960

South African police opened fire on a crowd of Black anti-pass-law demonstrators in a township south of Johannesburg, many of whom had deliberately left their pass books at home as an act of defiance. Sixty-nine died, most shot in the back as they ran. The incident shocked the world and turned the ANC toward armed struggle. Nelson Mandela, still free, began organizing a sabotage wing.