Wounded people lie in the street, 21 March 1960 in Sharpeville, near Vereeniging, where at least 180 black Africans, most of them women and children, were injured and 69 killed, when South African police opened fire on black protestors. The protest was organized by the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) against pass laws, which required all blacks to carry pass books (identity cards) at all times. On 30 March 1960, the government declared a state of emergency, detaining more than 18,000 people. The Sharpeville massacre led to the banning of the ANC and PAC and signaled the start of armed resistance in South Africa with the foundation of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the ANC, and Poqo, the military wing of the PAC. (STR/AFP/GettyImages) ( ARP1617180 )