Question

How did Mandela’s hunger for freedom change his life?

Answer 1

Hint: He was a victim of racial discrimination for a significant part of his life. He was also imprisoned for 27 years when tried to overthrow an all-white government.

Complete answer:
Nelson Mandela is remembered as the first black President of South Africa and for his anti- apartheid work. On July 18,1918 he was born in the tiny village of Mvezo, South Africa. At birth, he was named as Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.

Nelson Mandela observed that he was deprived the basic rights of a human being and hence was a victim of racial discrimination. His discontentment ignited hunger for freedom. Soon, he realized that he was not alone as other people of his race were also a victim of this quagmire. The desire of a non-racial society changed him into a righteous and self- sacrificing man. Therefore, he joined the African National Congress.

In 1914, he joined the African National Congress (ANC), which was the oldest Black political organisation in South Africa. At that time, he became a leader of Johannesburg’s youth wing of the ANC, but a year later in 1952, he became the deputy national president of the ANC.

In 1993, he was given the Nobel Prize for peace. On 10 May 1994, he was elected as South Africa’s first democratically elected President. At one point in his life he was also denounced as a communist terrorist and he also gained international acclaim for his activism. Thus, he was a controversial figure for a significant part of his life.

Note:
-People in South Africa also refer to him by his Thembu Clan name; i.e. a Madiba.
-Mandela is also known as the ‘Father of the Nation’.
-He died on 5th December 2013, due to a respiratory infection.