Mandela rose up against apartheid and called on all South Africans to join him. He spent his entire life fighting against racism and for freedom.
Mandela is known worldwide for many things, particularly as a freedom fighter, political prisoner, and African nationalist. He believed in democracy as the most effective engine for achieving and eradicating poverty and triumphing over inequity.
Nelson Mandela grew up in poverty. When his father died, he ran away to the big city of Johannesburg and it was there that he came into contact with apartheid. Blacks were separated from the whites and they were treated badly and unfairly. Nelson hated injustice and could not accept the way that people were treated differently because of the color of their skin.
He didn’t want any South African children to grow up with apartheid. He said that he was prepared to die to give the children a better future. Mandela rose up against apartheid and called upon all South Africans to join him. Although he was arrested and imprisoned for 27 years for fighting for freedom, Mandela refused to give up the struggle or give in to hate.
As president Nelson Mandela donated half his salary to poor children and when he got the Nobel Peace Prize he gave part of the prize money to help street children. Later, after Nelson Mandela had retired, he kept supporting children in need. He said his dealings with children and young people gave him energy.
Mandela served as president for five years. Among his accomplishments was South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission , designed to document human rights violations and help victims and violators come to term with their past. The commission offered the beginnings of restorative justice to a nation still smarting from centuries of scars.
After leaving office in 1999, Mandela spent the remainder of his life working to end poverty and raise awareness of HIV/AIDS. Mandela’s intervention at the international conference in Durban in 2000 was a watershed moment that marked the beginning of his total commitment to the fight against HIV/Aids.
Nelson Mandela used his life to change not only Africa but also the world forever in several ways. First, from the beginning, Mandela knew that a single person could be a catalyst for change, and he wasn’t afraid to be that catalyst. Mandela formed and joined many organizations and alliances during his lifetime and continues to be a symbol of the power that one individual has to make a difference. Mandela formed and joined many organizations and alliances during his lifetime and continues to be a symbol of the power that one individual has to make a difference.
He also refused to give up on his cause and his country, setting an example of dedication, courage, and sacrifice for all. Founded in 1999, the Nelson Mandela Foundation is the legacy that Mandela has left behind, focusing on justice, dialogue, and social cohesion. The foundation provides a non-partisan platform for public discourse on important social issues, contributing to policy decision-making.
Finally, Mandela channeled his childhood lessons of the small African village of Ubuntu, and gave those values to the world. Ubuntu is the Xhosa idea that there is a oneness to all people. Mandela took this belief to heart and believed that strength would overcome strife. He wrote in his autobiography that “To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others”.
References
news.un.org/en/story/2024/07/1152116
humanrights.ca/exhibition/mandela-struggle-freedom
worldschildrensprize.org/nelsonmandela
www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/06/nelson-mandela-aids-south-africa
www.red.org/reditorial/inspiration/8-ways-nelson-mandela-changed-the-world/
www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/nelson-mandela-fought-apartheid-work-not-complete
www.nationalgeographic.fr/histoire/2020/07/la-lutte-de-nelson-mandela-contre-lapartheid-un-combat-inacheve