7 amazing shocking things Nelson Mandela did
Only comparable to Mahatma Gandhi or Martin Luther King, the figure of Nelson Mandela was already a legend when he lived. But what did he do to be loved, to be a symbol of peace, of struggle, of ideals and of forgiveness?
He was a “low cost” lawyer for blacks
Mandela graduated as a lawyer and founded a law firm with Oliver Tambo where legal advice and representation was given to blacks during Apartheid.
He got a degree while he was in jail
Nelson Mandela spent 27 years of his life in the prisons of the racist Apartheid regime. Since the prisoners were separated, he was in the lowest ranking (he was black and condemned for political reasons) and went through much more hardship than any other prisoner. He did forced labor, did not receive as much food as the others, and was only entitled to one letter and one visit every six months. But Nelson Mandela continued to fight from within and studied by correspondence at the University of London to graduate in law.
He rejected freedom in favor of his ideals
Nelson Mandela, who was sentenced to life in prison, was offered to be free in 1985. The condition? Give up political activism. He rejected the offer and issued a statement that read: “What freedom am I offered if the organization of the people is still prohibited? Only free men can trade".
He was the first black president in the history of his country
Integrity, humility and struggle were the keys for Nelson Mandela to be elevated to the category of hero, which earned him to be democratically chosen by the people of South Africa to be their president. Already in power, Mandela went down in history as the man who made possible a social change that peacefully brought together blacks and whites, achieving human freedom and equal treatment and opportunities. “If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner ”, wrote the leader on one occasion.
In part, he united the country through rugby
Sport moves masses and hearts and Nelson Mandela knew it. That is why he used rugby, an ancient symbol of white oppression for blacks, to unite his people. South Africa hosted the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The South African team, where there was not a single black player, learned the Zulu anthem and won matches. Until he reached the final. And it was there that the world saw the power of Mandela. He shut down the stadium and about 80,000 people, almost all white, chanted the president's name. And then, it became known: Mandela was the president of the blacks, but also of the whites. He was the president of South Africa, and South Africa was beginning its change.
Mandela loves everyone
This is not very common in these times, but for South Africans Nelson Mandela is the most important man in the history of the country. That is why they adore his Tata Madiba and every July 18 they celebrate his birthday, which is International Mandela Day, a day established by the UN. Nelson Mandela is probably one of the most respected contemporary figures in the world.
The solidarity causes moved him to the end
The Nelson Mandela Memory Center, the Children's Fund, the Fund to Fight AIDS (one of his children died of this disease), etc. Nelson Mandela left the presidency in 1999, but continued to be linked to public life through his social work. He is a representation of the fight for human rights. The question is, will the legacy of Mandela, the man who made the dream of democracy and freedom possible, live?
