Freedom in South Africa was hard-won. Years of struggle against the apartheid regime oppressed black South Africans and imprisoned political activist like Nelson Mandela for 27 years.

Freedom fighters dedicated their lives fighting for the human rights of all South Africans. These Freedom fighters finally achieved a free and democratic South Africa in 1994 and became icons of the struggle.

27 Years later, racial oppression has been replaced by economic oppression – with 62% of the nation unemployed and 46% of the country’s youth not registered to vote. The country was named the most unequal country on earth by Time Magazine.

The youth are angry and disenfranchised, and the government is silencing them. Government censorship and new bills are infringing on the constitutional rights to be a free citizen.

We needed to mobilise a new generation of activists to fight for freedom once again.

So, we looked to the past.

We took iconic photos from historical freedom fighters and brought a little piece of history back to life. We remade the clothes from the photos to their exact original designs and created The Freedom Collection by Thesis – a clothing collection designed to inspire a new generation of activists

The iconic images got a new life – becoming the powerful imagery of the campaign that launched the collection.

The Freedom Collection launched on Freedom Day, for the 27th anniversary of the first democratic election in South Africa, and the 16th anniversary of Thesis - a fashion retailer, based in the heart of Soweto – a township in South Africa that was, and still is, home to some of the country’s most famous freedom fighters.

The campaign told people how to get involved and sales proceeds of the Freedom Collection went to the organisations fighting to protect our freedom

The campaign consisted of…

• Poster, Print, Press and In-store Collateral launched the Freedom Collection. The ads featured the historical images, repurposed into a fashion campaign. The original context and story behind the image were handwritten over it, while the clothing item had a description of what it was, the price, and how to buy it - either in-store or online. The sales proceeds went to the organisations continuously fighting for our freedom.

• A clothing collection inspired by struggle icons to make our message wearable – we designed a new clothing range exactly like the originals worn all those years ago.

• A look book housed the complete Freedom Collection, giving a more in-depth dive into the stories behind the fashion items and people that fought for freedom in South Africa – all detailed with handwritten copy. The book also unpacked the organisations that people could get involved.

The campaign created a movement:

• Sign-ups to organisations increased.

• Donations to organisations increased.

The campaign helped a disenfranchised youth see how they could get involved with each item of clothing linking them to an organisation that is fighting to protect our freedoms.

Organisations that benefited from sales where:

• Powa

• Lawyers for Human Rights

• Democracy Speaks

• Foundation For Human Rights

• Electoral Commission of South Africa

• Gender Justice