1/. “To be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects & enhances the freedom of others” (#Mandela)
#OTD 33 years ago, Nelson Mandela stepped out of Victor Verster prison
after 27 years behind bars in South Africa
aljazeera.com/amp/opinions/2…
#OTD 33 years ago, Nelson Mandela stepped out of Victor Verster prison
after 27 years behind bars in South Africa
aljazeera.com/amp/opinions/2…
2/. On that day, no one knew what Mandela looked like let alone what kind of man he had become
Some activists feared that he might have ’gone soft’
Others - reared on a daily diet of fear & propaganda - feared Mandela would be an angry & vengeful figure
Some activists feared that he might have ’gone soft’
Others - reared on a daily diet of fear & propaganda - feared Mandela would be an angry & vengeful figure
3/. In his first speech a few hours after his release, Mandela was statesman-like & dignified
But it was clear he had not ‘gone soft’
He saluted uMkhonto we Sizwe & said:
“The factors which necessitated the armed struggle still exist today. We have no option but to continue"
But it was clear he had not ‘gone soft’
He saluted uMkhonto we Sizwe & said:
“The factors which necessitated the armed struggle still exist today. We have no option but to continue"
https://twitter.com/stefsimanowitz/status/1359937505886408708
4/. Nowadays Mandela is revered: celebrated as the embodiment of gentle courage, forgiveness, compassion
And he was all these things
But he was also a man of fire & steel
A true freedom fighter
A man who took arms against a system of racism & injustice
And he was all these things
But he was also a man of fire & steel
A true freedom fighter
A man who took arms against a system of racism & injustice
https://twitter.com/stefsimanowitz/status/1387125191378149382
5/. It took more than 4 years from the time Mandela stepped out of prison until the election that would end 350 years of racial domination
The birth pangs of that new South Africa were tense & blood-soaked
There were powerful forces keen to derail progress toward majority rule
The birth pangs of that new South Africa were tense & blood-soaked
There were powerful forces keen to derail progress toward majority rule
https://twitter.com/StefSimanowitz/status/1121669592613445633
6/. “As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness & hatred behind, I’d still be in prison”
“Forgiveness liberates the soul, it removes fear. That’s why it’s such a powerful weapon”
#Mandela
“Forgiveness liberates the soul, it removes fear. That’s why it’s such a powerful weapon”
#Mandela
https://twitter.com/StefSimanowitz/status/1468234236020809730
7/. “When Nelson Mandela walked out of prison, it was also us who were set free” @CyrilRamaphosa said outside the prison gates #OTD 8 years ago
Breyten Breytenbach wrote at the time:
“Perhaps there is now a little more sense to our dark passage on Earth”
newsweek.com/remembering-ma…
Breyten Breytenbach wrote at the time:
“Perhaps there is now a little more sense to our dark passage on Earth”
newsweek.com/remembering-ma…
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