Henry M. Smith Photographic Slides Collection

These photographic slides were taken by Henry Mayall Smith, who lived in St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1969, he took an accompanied trip to cities in South Africa, former Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and Eswatini. Those identified cities include Johannesburg, Kimberly, Cape Town, Gqeberha, Durban, and Mbabane. He also spent time in Paris, France.

These images were taken by a middle-class white man who lived in St. Paul while on vacation to a nation with strict segregation laws. Those laws, if broken by those who lived there, were punishable by death or imprisonment. Those same laws created an oppressive class structure which forced families to part from their homes, their livelihoods, and eachother.

When viewing this collection, it is important to remember that these images were taken through the lens of someone who did not live in South Africa, who was not oppressed by their pro-segregationist laws, and was not a photojournalist actively seeking justice for the oppressed people of South Africa.These are the slides of a group of people seeking to have a fun, memorable vacation.