Nelson Mandela
NELSON MANDELA
Writer, president (non-American), civil rights activist (1918-2013)
There can be no sharper revelation of the soul of a society than the way it treats its children.-Mandela
Who was Nelson Mandela?
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (July 18, 1918 – December 5, 2013) was an anti-apartheid activist, politician, and philanthropist who became South Africa’s first black president between 1994 and 1999. He was active in the movement. against apartheid at age 20 Mandela joined the African Congress in 1942. For 20 years, he led a campaign of peaceful and non-violent defiance against the South African government and its racist policies. Beginning in 1962, Mandela spent 27 years in prison for political crimes. IN 1993, Mandela and South African President FW de Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to dismantle the country’s apartheid system. For generations to come, Nelson Mandela will continue to be a source of inspiration for civil rights activists around the world.
When and where was Nelson Mandela born?
Nelson Mandela was born Rolihlahla Mandela on July 18, 1918, in the small village of Mvezo, on the banks of the Mbashe River in Transkei, South Africa. “Rolihlahla” in the Xhosa language literally means “pulling a tree branch”, but is more commonly translated as “troublemaker.”
Family and early life
Nelson Mandela’s father, who was destined to be chief, served as an advisor to the tribal chiefs for several years, but lost both his title and his fortune in a dispute with the local colonial magistrate. Mandela was just a baby at the time, and his father’s loss of status forced his mother to relocate the family to Qunu, an even smaller town north of Mvezo. The family lived in huts and ate the local harvest of corn, sorghum, squash, and beans, which was all they could afford. The water came from springs and streams and the cooking was done outdoors. Mandela played the games of young children, became the first in his family to attend school. As was the custom at the time, and probably due to the bias of the British education system in South Africa, Mandela’s teacher told him that his new name would be Nelson.
Children and wife
Mandela married three times and had six children. He married his first wife, Evelyn Ntoko Mase, in 1944. The couple had four children together: Madiiba Thembekile (died 1964), Makgatho (died 2005), Makaziwe (died 1948). at nine months) and Maki. The couple divorced in 1957. In 1958, Mandela married Winnie Madikizela; The couple had two daughters together, Zenani (now South Africa’s ambassador to Argentina) and Zindziswa (South Africa’s ambassador to Denmark), before Two years later, in 1998, Mandela married Graca Machel, Mozambique’s prime minister of education, with who remained until his death in 2013.
Movies and books
In 1994, Mandela published his autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, much of which he had secretly written while in prison.The book inspired the 2013 film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. He also published several books on his life and his struggles, among them It is not easy to walk towards freedom, Nelson Mandela: The struggle is my life; and Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folk Tales.
Mandela day
IN 2009, Mandela’s birthday (July 18) was declared Mandela Day, an international day to promote world peace and celebrate the South African leader’s legacy. According to the Nelson Mandela Memory Center, the annual event aims to encourage citizens around the world to give Back the way Mandela has done throughout his life.
When and how did Nelson Mandela die?
On December 5, 2013, at the age of 95, Nelson Mandela died at his home in Johannesburg, South Africa. After suffering a lung infection in January 2011, Mandela was briefly hospitalized in Johannesburg for surgery for a stomach ailment in early 2012. He was released from prison a few days later and later returned to Qunu. Mandela would be hospitalized many times over the next several years, in December 2012, March 2013 and June 2013, for further tests and medical treatment related to his recurring lung infection.
Nelson Mandela was born 100 years ago and continues to inspire.