Introduction:

“The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”  Civil rights activist, Nelson Mandela inspired many people with his powerful words. He ended the system of apartheid with many peaceful protests.  Even though he was imprisoned and threatened, he never lost sight of what he believed in. This man helped stop discrimination in South Africa. He fought tirelessly for black people to have the right to vote and was elected the first black president of his country.  Nelson Mandela dedicated his whole life to advance the cause of his people. For this he was awarded 260 honours and is well known to many people living across the world.

Family and Early Life:

Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918, in Mvezo, South Africa.  Mandela was born into the Xhosa culture. He was a member of the royal family and was next in line to be chief.  His father served as chief of the village he grew up in, and when he died, Mandela was groomed by a tribal regent to take a leadership position.  He had a big and loving family. His parents were Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa (dad) and Noqaphi Nosekeni (mom). Nelson Mandela’s mother was the third of his father’s four wives.  Nelson Mandela had nine sisters and three brothers. His family always supported him in his vision of equality. Since Nelson Mandela’s dad was the leader of his tribe, Nelson was inspired from a young age to follow in his footsteps and achieve greatness.   

He had three spouses over many years: Evelyn Mase (m. 1944–1958), Winnie Mandela (m. 1958–1996), and Graça Machel (m. 1998–2013).  Nelson was not his real name. Mandela’s given name at birth was Rolihlahla which in English means “troublemaker”. The English name “Nelson” was given to Mandela by a schoolteacher.  

Education

Nelson Mandela’s childhood was filled with training and education. He attended a local missionary school, a boarding school, and then a Methodist secondary school.  Mandela was an athlete. After secondary school, Mandela attended the University of Fort Hare. This was an elite South African school that was the only “Western-style” higher education available to black citizens in the country.  He completed his bachelor’s degree by correspondence in Johannesburg. Afterwards, Mandela studied law at the University of Witwatersrand and after obtaining his degree, he became involved in the fight against racial discrimination.

Inspiration:

At the time Nelson Mandela lived, there was a lot of racism towards black people.  He was very upset by the state of black people in his country and this inspired him to become a civil rights activist.  In the 1940s, millions of black African’s were denied the right to vote, some were killed, and many were tortured. This system was called apartheid.  Nelson Mandela did not approve of this and wanted to see a change in this unjust system. He wanted to see all people being treated the same way.  He was also inspired by other civil rights activists such as Mahatma Gandhi, Walter Sisulu, and Albert Lutuli.

Apartheid:

Apartheid was a political and economic policy that was created by Hendrik Verwoerd.  This policy caused many unfair treatments and resulted in numerous uprisings. This system was structured around racial segregation.  In South Africa, there was a white minority which sanctioned racism against the “non-white” majority. The implementation of apartheid, often called “separate development” since the 1960s, was made possible through the Population Registration Act of 1950, which classified all South Africans as either black people, coloured (people with a mixed race), or white.

Activism:

Nelson Mandela took his first steps towards fighting racism by informing people at his school about discrimination and he also started fighting against it.  Eventually, he was expelled from his school for his activism during 1940. In 1944, Nelson Mandela co-founded the Afican National Congress (ANC) National Youth League.  Nelson Mandela was involved with many protests against the system of apartheid. Mandela never used any sort of violence towards a person as he was very peaceful. He believed that “Great anger and violence can never build a nation”.  Even though Mandela was peaceful, many people hated him for trying to destroy the system of apartheid. Some people tried to stop him and his cause, but ultimately they failed. Mandela also delivered many great speeches such as “I Am Prepared to Die” and “A Surge of Strength and Joy”.

In Prison:

Since Nelson Mandela’s protests seemed to be having no effect on the people who inhabited South Africa he led a sabotage campaign against the government.  Due to this he was arrested and imprisoned in 1962 and subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment for conspiring to overthrow the state following the Rivonia Trial.  Mandela served 27 years in prison, split between Robben Island, Pollsmoor Prison, and Victor Verster Prison. Even while Mandela was in jail he still fought for a democratic and free society.  Nelson Mandela was even more powerful when he was in jail. He shared his message through his wife Winnie Mandela when he was in prison.

In addition, he wrote books that shared his thoughts and beliefs.  For the years he was in jail, Mandela and eight other activists were forced to work day and night on an isolated island.  During his twenty-seventh year in prison, president F. W. de Klerk released him in 1990 with fears of a racial civil war. This day was very momentous because no one had even seen a picture of Mandela since his imprisonment.

End of Apartheid:

Nelson Mandela and F. W. de Klerk led efforts to negotiate an end to apartheid.  Negotiations took place against a backdrop of political violence in the country. These negotiations resulted in the 1994 multiracial general election in which Mandela led the ANC to victory and became the first black president of South Africa!  Many people were shocked and amazed at how a black person who had been imprisoned for most of his life could subsequently become president of the nation. Nothing like this had ever happened throughout history. Leading a broad coalition government which promulgated a new constitution, Mandela emphasized reconciliation between the country's racial groups and created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate past human rights abuses.  This is an example of when Nelson Mandela was a good leader.

Presidency:

Once the system of apartheid was terminated he ran for president and won.  During his presidency, Mandela worked to protect South Africa's economy from collapse.  While he was president he also continued to fight against racism. After five years (one term) he decided to step down as president.  Even though he stepped down, it didn’t stop him from continuing to fight against discrimination. During 1999, he started an organization called the Nelson Mandela Foundation.  In 2004, Mandela stepped down from public life altogether to spend time with his kids and spouse.