Penn Calendar Penn A-Z School of Arts and Sciences University of Pennsylvania

Legacy: Apartheid's Shadow

Wednesday, February 25, 2026 - 5:30pm to 7:30pm

Public Trust
4017 Walnut Street

Registration preferred. Click here to register.

Join us at Public Trust for Legacy: Apartheid's Shadow, a film screening and conversation about the ways Apartheid's enduring legacy continues to shape South Africa and the pursuit of justice today. Following the screening, director Tara Erica Moore will be in conversation with Andrea Mitchell Center Director Jeffrey Green.


About the film:

Thirty years after the fall of apartheid, South Africa remains a divided nation and one of the most unequal countries in the world. Legacy is a landmark documentary film that reveals how the deep-seated inequalities created by decades of oppression continue to shape South African society. Offering a global call to confront the past in order to re-imagine a more equal future, Legacy is a vital meditation on accountability and social justice that resonates far beyond one nation, mirroring struggles playing out worldwide today.

With unprecedented access, the film follows Wilhelm Verwoerd, the grandson of HF Verwoerd, the former Prime Minister of South Africa and so-called "Architect of Apartheid," as he grapples with his family’s role in one of history’s most brutal regimes. His deeply personal reckoning exposes apartheid’s endurance today, both systemically and psychologically.

Legacy also features intimate interviews with key figures in the history of Apartheid, including Hilda Ndude, a resistance leader and anti-apartheid activist, Z Pallo Jordan, a Government Minister in Mandela's Cabinet, and Mac Maharaj, who was imprisoned alongside Nelson Mandela, as well as sociologists, political scientists, land accountability lawyers, spiritual leaders and others. Through their voices and stories of resilience and struggle, we hear firsthand accounts of the lasting trauma and challenges of building a truly equitable and just society. Legacy concludes with a series of reflections on the progress made and unfinished work of creating a truly post-Apartheid South Africa.