Donato Francisco Mattera is a poet, musician, and community activist based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was raised in Sophiatown, a mixed area of Johannesburg before apartheid. The apartheid government then forced his family to move to Westbury. It was through the constant removal and relocation of his people that he began to understand where he stood with the apartheid government and politics. He joined the African National Congress Youth League and was involved in the politics of Black Consciousness. He used his writing to support his activism, helping form the Union of Black Journalists and Congress of South African Writers. He has written an autobiography, Memory is the Weapon, for which he was awarded the Steve Biko Prize. He has also received an honorary Doctorate in Literature from the University of Natal, and fellowships from Sweeden and America. He has been a journalist for the Sunday Times, The Weekly now Mail and Guardian, and The Sowetan. He continues to be a popular motivational speaker and works with the children in the Eldorado community.
Information from South African History Online.
