Nelson Mandela

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born july 18 in 1918 in the small village of small village of Mvezo in the Umtata district, capital of the Transkei. He was born to Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa, who was a counsel to the Thembu king. His mother was one of 4 wives married to Mphakanyiswa, his mother was the third wife. At about the age of 7 mandela became the first person in his family to attend school. Here he give was given the name "nelson" by a methodist teacher . At about the age of nine his father had passed on so mandela was left to the care of the Regent, Jongintaba, but instead of going to be schooled by the regent he went to the Wesleyan mission school that was right next door. Following Xhosa custom's he became initiated at the age of 16. he then proceeded to attend Clarkebury Boarding Institute to learn about the customs and teachings of western culture, here he earned his certficate of juniors in two years instead of the usual three. at the age of 19 he enrolled at the Wesleyan college in Fort Beaufort, where most thembu attend. Upon entering university of Fort Hare with his Bachelor of Arts, near the end of the first year he became involed in a boycott with the Students' Representative Council against the campus police and security services, shortly afterwards he was asked to leave by fort beaufort. He then proceeded to go to joanaesburg where he became an articled clerk at a friends law firm. He then proceeded to complete his studies at the university

of south africa by correspondance. I myself find it fit so see him as a hero and not a villian.

Being a young and active student Mandela became involved with fighting the white government denial of political, social, and economic rights to South Africa's black majority. He joined the african national congress in 1942 and then repectfully founded its "Youth League"with help from Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo and others involed with fighting the opression. When the Afrikaans ganed victory in 1948 with there aparthied, Mandela and his party where even more embossed with his campaign of defiance and his congress of the peoples. Also in this time period Mandela and Oliver Tambo started a law firm: Mandela and Tambo. Their mission statement was to provide legal service to blacks for a low cost or in most cases frees. This was a great cause since most black citizens would go on without any legal representation. Later on. On decemceber 5th 1956, himself with 150 other people where arrested nad charged with treason despite

it being a protest of peace. This trial took place from 1956 until

1961 and all that where stained guility where aquitted. Another protest turned ill-fated when south african police opened fire on the crowd in the town of sharpsville in march 1960. this evet was dubbed the sharpsville massacre. This inccident accompanied with the banning and flushing of anti-aparthied and equal opportunist groups pushed mandela and his canadites to take on a roll of armed action being that the white government would not listen to or allow peaceful equal right's demonstrations.

In 1961 mandela took it upon

himself to become the leader of the african nation congress blunt action group "Umkhonto we Sizwe"(can be "translated to spear of the nation") . He co-made a plan for sabotage against military and govermnet strongpoints and also a plan for a feasible

guirrila war if say sabotage was to fail. Altough a few decades later the Umkhonto we Sizwe did engage the government in guirrila war, mostly during the 1980's. then on august 5th 1962 he was arrested and imprisoned after being on the run for a time period of 17 months. 3 days later in an african court of law the charges of organnizing protests and strikes and leaving the country illegally where read to him. On October 25, 1962 he was sentenced to five years in prison. Then 2 years later a verict was reached on his association

and involement with the african national congress. While he was in prison , ten of his promenet fellow ANC' leaders, had been captured and charged with crimes that equivlent to that of treason. All members except for that of Rusty Bernstein where found guilty and escaped the death penalty but where sentenced to life imprisionment on June 12th 1964. over the years mandela became even more associated and connected to the opposition of aparthied to the point where his name would be in many

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