'But only we Black men die': The 1929-1933 malaria epidemics in Natal and Zululand

Abstract

The malaria epidemics in parts of Natal and in Zululand during the period under review were unusually severe and thousands of blacks died. Drought and malnutrition resulted in debility, particularly in children, while the economic depression brought unemployed workers home to the reserves. They and the thousands of foreign workers employed on the sugar estates had no immunity to malaria, which was not endemic to the region. In addition, many Zulus refused to take quinine because of their distrust of the government and the health authorities. The combination of these factors made these the most virulent malaria epidemics in living memory.