Article published in The Global Panorama - Jan 2014
“No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”
These were among some of the words of wisdom spoken by the great freedom fighter, Nelson Mandela; they are words that still resonate strongly with us today. Mandela was at the forefront of the anti-apartheid movement and he was the impetus that ultimately led to negotiations that provoked a constitutional reform, transition of power and a democratic South Africa that was no longer ruled by a white minority. In being the driving force behind the systemic dismantling of apartheid and in securing his country’s freedom, the people of South Africa unanimously heralded Mandela as their first black president; In 1994 that dream was realized when thousands of South Africans united to cast their vote for the first ever democratic elections.
The means of procuring this long-awaited outcome however, was by no means an easy feat but a rather treacherous and arduous journey, to say in the least. Among the many sacrifices Mandela made, the most burdensome of all was the twenty-seven years of his life spent in imprisonment. Mandela was ostracized by the Afrikaner minority rule for his involvement with the ANC, which sought to free South Africa from Apartheid. Mandela organized rallies against the government, met secretly with other members of the ANC party and amassed support for their cause both locally and globally; he carried out these activities well aware of the inherent risk associated with them. Mandela eventually formed “Umkhonto We Sizwe,” a branch of the ANC that no longer used peaceful methods to achieve their goal. In order to further their cause and gain some traction, Mandela realized it had become imperative to take up arms against the Afrikaner government. Imbrued in perilous politics, Nelson Mandela along with some of his comrades, was arrested, tried and sentenced to life in prison. His incarceration failed to break his resolve and determination but instead prompted him to make the best out of his predicament. In prison he continued to devise and discuss various ways in which him and fellow prisoners could help other members of the ANC overthrow the government. He secretly reviewed and aided other inmates craft appeals if they were wrongfully convicted. In the twenty-seven years in prison, Nelson Mandela also worked towards earning his law degree through correspondence courses and wrote part of his autobiography (he went through great lengths to keep the manuscript a secret from the prison guards). He facilitated the elimination of some of the racial prejudices present even within the prison system, for example, strongly advocated for everyone in prison to be given the same kind of pants and sugar for everyone's tea regardless of race or the colour of their skin. Mandela was rarely permitted visitation rights and very seldom got to see his wife, mother, children and the rest of his extended family. He and the other prisoners were also made to work long, hard hours at a nearby quarry. These aforementioned examples are but a few of the many injustices Nelson Mandela endured for the sake of his cause.
Nelson Mandela made beyond imaginable sacrifices for his beloved country, South Africa and its people. In spite of insurmountable odds, Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990 and he picked up right where he had left off. Perhaps the most impressive thing yet was the fact that Nelson Mandela harboured no resentment or anger towards the people that stole twenty seven-years of his life. Today, Nelson Mandela is considered one of the greatest icons in the fight against racial injustice. He rose to such prominence not only because of his cause and the freedom he worked towards attaining for his country but also because of his unique outlook on life, his high moral standing and superior knowledge.
December 5th 2014 marked the 1st death anniversary of Nelson Mandela. Given the current tumultuous state of affairs in the United States, Nelson Mandela’s memory is looked upon with angst and pain of the resounding racial prejudices against unarmed African Americans by the police. Rodney King was one of the first black victim of a brutal beating by cops that was recorded on video and later released to the public in 1991. In the aftermath of this incidence, the cops implicated in the beating were acquitted and massive protests broke out as a result of this verdict. As its stands today, police brutality and racial profiling seems rampant and infinite.
The most recent victims of this senseless violence were Michael Brown of Ferguson, Missouri and Eric Garner of Staten Island, New York. Michael Brown was an eighteen-year old teenager who was shot by the cop Darren Wilson. Despite questionable doubt against the police officer who shot Brown, Darren Wilson was acquitted by the grand jury. Shortly after this, Eric Garner, a forty-three year old African American was approached by policemen, held in an illegal chokehold and killed but not before he had struggled to convey to the cops no less than eleven times, “I can’t breath.” Again, the grand jury acquitted Officer Daniel Pantelo, who was responsible for the death. The most surprising aspect of this case was perhaps the fact that a video of the actual assault exists and yet it was deemed futile in building the case against the officer. The string of incidences involving police brutality against unarmed blacks has sparked a wave of demonstrations across the nation.
Social justice and equality is everyone's prerogative. In an effort to show their support, the L.A Lakers wore t-shirts with the words “I can’t breath” and celebrities like John legend and his wife have sent food trucks to feed the protesters. Medical schools around the country including Harvard School of Medicine organized “die-ins” to show their solidarity. We stand at the helm of this contagious initiative that demands an overhaul of the justice system for the sake of posterity. As we face this volatility and stand at a critical juncture, Nelson Mandela’s memory looms large as a beacon of hope, perseverance and conduit for change.
Nelson Mandela: “I hate race discrimination most intensely and in all its manifestations. I have fought it all my life; I fight it now, and will do so until the end of my days.”
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