The Long Walk to Freedom; Nelson Mandela
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Nelson Mandela. The apartheid in South Africa was a system that was ruled by the white people in South Africa. This system had laws that segregated people based on the color of their skin and kept them apart. The apartheid was ended in 1989 under the president Fredrick William de Klerk and then Nelson Mandela became the first black president. Following the apartheid in South Africa, Nelson Mandela helped acquire racial equality in South Africa, spread world peace, and improved the South African economy.
Nelson Mandela was born in the Transeki region of South Africa in 1918, and he was the son of the leader of the tribe. Unfortunately his father died nine years later and he was adopted by another high ranking member of his tribe, this helped him get a good education and become a leader when he was older. After he graduated high school he went to the University College of Fort Hare where he studied art (“Nelson Mandela Biography”). The apartheid in South Africa started in 1948 and was led by the white minority. The apartheid was a social and political system where the country segregated people based on their race (A History). Nelson Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1952 to try and eliminate this system of inequality. After doing so he went through some tough times in her life.
Nelson Mandela was arrested twice soon after he joined the African National Congress in 1952. He was arrested for treason in 1956 when he was trying to get rid of the apartheid in South Africa through peaceful rallying. Nelson Mandela was arrested along with 154 other people for supporting the Suppression of Communist Act. This act stated that any parties in South Africa that were communist parties and they were to be banned (Mandela, Nelson). In this case the party that was displaying acts of communism were the whites who supported the apartheid. Nelson Mandela got sentenced to five years in jail. He got released in 1961 and still continued fighting for freedom. The next time Mandela got a arrested was in 1963 and he got life sentence for participating in anti apartheid acts. This group of events was called the Rivonia Trials and this was a turning point in the anti apartheid acts. Nelson Mandela got sentenced for life along with a group of other people who were rallying towards freedom (Nelson Mandela Biography). Overall the apartheid in South Africa led Nelson Mandela to fight for equality which changed history. All of these events led up to Nelson Mandela becoming the leader and role model he was and still is today.
Luckily Nelson Mandela got released from prison in 1990 because of the end of the apartheid in South Africa (Nelson Mandela Speaks). If the apartheid would not have ended Nelson Mandela would still be in prison and South Africa still wouldn’t of had racial equality. The apartheid was ended under Fredrick William de Klerk in 1989 and Nelson Mandela was elected soon after in 1994 (Mandela, Nelson). Once the apartheid was ended the “leader” of the anti apartheid movement was elected president. Nelson Mandela was the first black president of South Africa and he changed many things around the world while he was president. The presidency Nelson Mandela gained allowed him to spread world peace, become role model, and even improve the economy of South Africa.
While Nelson Mandela was the president of South Africa he changed many things both locally and worldwide. To begin with Nelson Mandela ended all racial inequality in South Africa (A History). As one would imagine after the end of the end of the apartheid in South Africa their was still racial inequality in the country. Even though it wasn’t as severe as it was when the apartheid was in place the lighter skinned people still segregated themselves from the darker skinned people in public places. When Nelson Mandela became president he did his best job to end this practice. Nelson Mandela gave everyone equal public areas, whereas before the lighter skinned people had their own better, separate areas. This helped show the world that even when a country has been struggling to gain peace one person can step up and lead the people. Nelson Mandela also improved the economy in South Africa (Nelson Mandela An). Nelson Mandela changed many economic policies that before benefitted the lighter skinned population of South Africa. The first thing he did was change the budget of the South African government. As one would assume this helped South Africa save money which in turn improved their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Before he changed this policy the left over money that the government gained went to the political leaders which were usually lighter skinned people. One policy that Nelson Mandela approved helped higher the minimum wage in South Africa. This helped the lower class in South Africa by not allowing the higher class to keep all of the money they earn. Once this policy got approved the higher class had to share their wealth with the lower class. Another policy that Nelson Mandela approved was a policy that helped the unemployment rate in South Africa to go down. All of these things benefited the South African economy in huge ways. Another thing that Nelson Mandela did while he was still alive was start a charity organization. This charity organization is called Nelson Mandela Children’s Funds and it is used to help cure children of diseases in South Africa. The most common problem that the charity organization had to deal with in South Africa was AIDS. This charity is still running today and has saved thousands of young lives in South Africa. These are some of the accomplishments Nelson Mandela achieved while he was still alive.
Nelson Mandela did not only influence the world while he was alive, but he still does today. Nelson Mandela is a huge role model and historic character around the world. People look up to Nelson Mandela because he went through hard times and was still able to succeed with his goal. Nelson Mandela also still helps spread world peace even though he is not with us anymore (Mandela, Nelson). Nelson Mandela’s quotes and speeches are still used in this day and age to teach people life lessons. People look up to how Nelson Mandela achieved peace in South Africa even though he was detained for more than thirty years by the South African government. Another way that Nelson Mandela is still remembered is through awards (Nelson Mandela Biography). Nelson Mandela and Fredrick William de Klerk both received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 because of their perseverance that eventually led to them ending the apartheid in South Africa. The Nobel Peace Prize is given to people who really achieved something in their lifetime that will impact the world forever. Nelson Mandela was given many more awards, but this was the main one that he received. Many awards are also named after Nelson Mandela and they are given to people who have acquired something great with their life. This is how Nelson Mandela still impacts the world in the twenty first century.
In conclusion Nelson Mandela acquired racial equality in South Africa, spread world peace, and improved the South African economy. Nelson Mandela started a new era for South Africa and the world.