December 10: Nelson Mandela

December 10 is Universal Declaration of Human Rights Day

The first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled. You can find a link to the Declaration on the UN's website ... HERE.

 

NELSON MANDELA REMEMBERED...

 Hearing of the passing of civil rights giant, President Nelson Mandela, was a sad and, initially, scary occasion for me. He did such an outstanding job of holding humanity accountable for the greater good that my initial thoughts were, ‘what will the world be like without him and who will step up in his place?’ But, I quickly realized that it is up to us, as individuals and as a global society, to honor his strong legacy by upholding and furthering the moral principles for which he governed himself and the world.   Ashley Gibson, Director of Communication, Casady School

 

From Awesome Stories:  http://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/Invictus

Table of Contents

• 0. STORY PREFACE
• 1. APARTHEID in SOUTH AFRICA
• 2. NELSON MANDELA
• 3. MANDELA and APARTHEID
• 4. MANDELA at ROBBEN ISLAND
• 5. FREE MANDELA
• 6. MANDELA BECOMES PRESIDENT
• 7. RUGBY and the SPRINGBOKS
• 8. FRANCOIS PIENAAR
• 9. ONE TEAM, ONE COUNTRY
• 10. PLAY FOR THESE PEOPLE
• 11. THE GAME THAT MADE A NATION
• 12. MADIBA and PIENAAR - POST-WIN
• 13. Awesome Guide to 21st Century Research

First Chapter

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

From Invictus,

by  William Ernest Henley 

It is the late 1940s in South Africa.  New laws, impacting racial segregation, herald an ominous future for people of color who live at the southern tip of the African continent.
Over the coming decades, the plight of black South Africans will worsen.  Although they are the majority in their country, they have no say in government because they cannot vote in national elections.
How can they be masters of their fate when they are not even allowed to live where they wish?
                           

When people were crowded into sub-standard housing, in the Johannesburg area of Sowetto (standing for "South Western Townships"), racial tensions began to flare.  Nelson Mandela, a lawyer and anti-apartheid leader, also had a home in Sowetto.  He would rise to become the leader of his nation - South Africa - but it would take years before that happened.  Image of Sowetto homes by Matt-80, online via Wikimedia Commons.  License:  CC BY-2.0

Author: Carole D. Bos, J.D.

 

Original Release Date:  December, 2009

Updated December 5, 2013