Nelson Mandela

NELSON MANDELA

   According to Strayer, “During the 1950’s, a new and younger generation of the African

National Congress (ANC) leadership, which now included Nelson Mandela, broadened

its base of support and launched nonviolent civil disobedience boycotts, strikes,

demonstrations, and the burning of the hated passes that all Africans were required to

carry. All of these actions were similar to and inspired by the tactics that Gandhi had

pioneered in South Africa and used in India twenty to thirty years earlier. The

government of South Africa responded with tremendous repression, including the

shooting, of sixty-nine unarmed demonstrators at Sharpville in 1960, the banning of the

ANC, and the imprisonment of its leadership, including Nelson Mandela.” (p.1100)

    Upon facing the death penalty Mandela states, “I have fought against white

domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the

ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and

with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if

needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”     

    Despite all that Nelson Mandela had endured, he over came the struggles not only for

himself but for his country. Africa needed a leader that was familiar and has

experienced firsthand of racism, inhumane actions, poverty, and fighting over bearing

white leaders dominating South Africa. In 1994 he became Africa’s first black president.

    Today, Mandela is remember for not only all of his strengths but for the nation’s

accomplishments. He bestowed upon the country, pride, unity, and empowerment.

Mandela provided hope for his people with new change and growth for the future. He

continued to fight for the rights of his people until he died in 2013.

A Quote by Nelson Mandela: “As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.”