Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, 1918. His father died just before Mandela’s 7 years birthday. When he grew up he wanted to be a lawyer, and he also wanted make his own contribution of the freedom struggle of his people.
Education and start in politics:
After receiving a primary education on a local school, Mandela was sent to Healdtown, to go on with his secondary education. After that he enrolled on a College University, where his interests in politics started. At the College he was elected onto the Student’s Representative Council. Later he was suspended from the college for joining a protest boycott. After a little break he went to Johannesburg where he completed his education. While he was studying in Johannesburg, he joined the African National Congress (ANC).
What is ANC, and what was Mandela’s role in it?
ANC is a political party, created to eliminate the race discrimination in South Africa. The main goals for the party was to get a South Africa free for all, both black and whites. But since the beginning for the party in 1923, not very much happened. Until Mandela and many other young Africans joined the party because of the apartheid politics of the leading “National Party”. For ANC it was very important to stay non-violent. And that was one of the things Mandela liked about it. But after a long time where nothing happened the Party started to move in the late fifties. Mandela and some other young Africans had become leaders. They made the ANC a mass movement. But that didn’t help very much. The apartheid was still getting worse. During the fifties some new rules were introduced. Busses, benches and even some beaches were closed for blacks. So some young ANC members started a sub party to the ANC, ANC Youth League. They said it was the same party, just a bit more effective. Actions as boycott, strike, civil disobedience became official ANC politics. But after a police action in 1960 where hundreds of unarmed blacks where shot, Mandela and ANC Youth League stopped the non-violence. Mandela travelled to some of the neighbor countries and started guerilla training to fight the police. And while he was in other countries, other ANC members sabotaged the police. In 1962 Mandela was imprisoned for 5 years for illegal travelling. At the same time The ANC was made illegal so they had to act underground. Just after the illegalizing of the ANC, Mandela said in an interview: I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.
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