One of the first things I did
in my freshman year of college was to march across campus in protest of the
university’s investment in South Africa.
This was a time of apartheid, and Nelson Mandela had been imprisoned
because he was striving for equality. In
the 1980’s, many years after our own country had corrected the Jim Crow laws,
South Africa still severely limited rights for blacks. They finally changed their system, resulting
from divestment from countries, businesses, and universities, as well as the
work of activists like Nelson Mandela. In
1990, when the South African President F.W. de Klerk finally was ready to give
South African blacks the rights they deserved, he freed Nelson Mandela and
taught him how to be the next leader.
Both received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, and Nelson Mandela became
President in 1994. In 1999, he resigned
and handed power to younger leaders, to set an example of democracy.
Friday, December 6, 2013
Remembering Nelson Mandela
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