Bob Vassen interviewed by Ruen Govinder 2005 East Lansing, Michigan, United States.
Born in 1938, Bob Vassen grew up in the Indian community of Fordsburg, one mile from downtown Johannesburg, where he was active in the Transvaal Indian Youth Congress. In 1962, Vassen joined UmKhonto we Sizwe (MK), the military wing of the ANC, which by that time had been declared illegal. He was part of an MK cell that engaged in sabotage activities until 1964, when he was forced to go into exile in London, where he continued to work with the ANC. From 1990 to 2006, Vassen was Associate Director of the English Language Center at Michigan State University. Vassen edited Letters from Robben Island: A Selection of Ahmed Kathrada's Prison Correspondence, 1964-89.
