It is probably fair to say that the mass action by women in 1955 and 1956 showed the ANC the way forward. The

1958 ANC conference opened with a bright red banner, 'Malibongwe Makhosikazi' ('Let the women be praised').

'The women have been active in those major issues that most keenly affect them: Bantu Education, the threat of passes for women, the home, the children and the family. They have administered to us all a lesson on how the people's daily needs can become the kernel of a united protest campaign so that even those not previously active in political affairs, feel compelled to join in.'