- People across the world showed great concern, remaining vigilant, during the recent <strong><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2011/01/28/in-the-news-mandela-released-from-hospital/">hospitalization of Nelson Mandela</a></strong>. With the same resilience the anti-apartheid activist displayed during his 27-year prison term, he keeps fighting. It’s simply another moment etched in Mr. Mandela’s glorious story. <strong>BlackEnterprise.com</strong> highlights 10 ways the South African revolutionary changed history.
MAPUTO, MOZAMBIQUE - JUNE 14: Former President Nelson Mandela of South Africa relaxes while on holiday on June 14, 2006 in Maputo, Mozambique. He is retired and takes time off with his wife Graca Machel in her residence in central Maputo. Mr. Mandela turns 88 on July 18, 2006. The ANC freedom fighter spent 27 years in prison, and was released in 1990. He became President of South Africa after the first multiracial democratic elections in April 1994. Mr. Mandela retired after one term in 1999 and gave the leadership to the current president Mr. Thabo Mbeki. (Photo by Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)
- <strong>Establishes Pact of Elders</strong> <ul> <li><strong></strong>On the cusp of his 89<sup>th</sup> birthday, Mandela announced yet another initiative—<strong>The Elders</strong>. He began leading a group of 12 “wise men and women” called to address global issues.</li> </ul>
BUJUMBURA, BURUNDI - APRIL 30: Former South African President Nelson Mandela (L) shakes hands with former Tutsi President of Burundi Pierre Buyoya (R) April 30, 2003 in Bujumbura, Burundi. Burundi's new Hutu President Domitien Ndayizeye was sworn in at the Palace of Congres in front of other heads of state and representatives of the Great Lakes region in East Africa. As per the Arusha agreement Ndayizeye, of the Hutu tribe, will hold the position of President for a period of 18 months, as did former President Pierre Buyoya, of the Tutsi tribe. The transitional government is part of a peace deal aimed at ending the civil war that has been ongoing in Burundi for ten years. (Photo by Mark Renders/Getty Images)
- <strong>AIDS Advocate</strong> <ul> <li>In January of 2005, the revered leader announced that his son Makgatho, 54, died of AIDS complications. <strong><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2010/12/01/6-misconceptions-young-people-have-about-hivaids/">AIDS activists</a></strong> praised Mandela’s decision to disclose his son’s condition because the epidemic is rarely, if at all, talked about in the South African community. According to 2009 statistics, 310,000 South Africans died of AIDS and approximately 5.6 million are living with HIV and AIDS. His announcement was part of a larger initiative to spread awareness about the disease.</li> </ul>
SOUTH AFRICA - JANUARY 01: President Nelson Mandela. a smiling President Nelson Mandela waving a a small ANC flag with a little girl on his lap. (Photo by Media24/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
- <strong>90<sup>th</sup> Birthday Bash</strong> <ul> <li><strong><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2011/01/19/exclusive-naomi-campbell-offers-up-and-comers-industry-advice/">Naomi Campbell</a></strong> and a bevy of stars came out in full affect for the statesman’s charity concert and birthday extravaganza. <strong>Will Smith</strong> hosted the event and artists including <strong>Leona Lewis</strong> and <strong>Amy Winehouse</strong> took the stage at the <strong>46664</strong> charity concert in London’s <strong>Hyde Park</strong> to honor Mandela’s 90<sup>th</sup> birthday. The 46664 campaign, named after Mandela’s prison number, is a movement to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.</li> </ul>
JOHANNESBURG, GAUTENG - DECEMBER 01: Nelson Mandela hosts the 46664 World AIDS Day Concert at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg - South Africa, December 1, 2007 (Photo by Michelly Rall/WireImage)
- <strong></a>Mandela Day</strong> <ul> <li>In November 2009, the <strong>United Nations General Assembly</strong> announced July 18 <strong>Nelson Mandela International Day</strong> to honor his contribution to world peace and freedom.</li> </ul>
- <strong><em>Conversations with Myself</em></strong> <ul> <li>The book gives readers an inside look into the life of the private, political figure. <em><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Conversations-Myself-Nelson-Mandela/dp/0374128952/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296519693&sr=8-1">Conversations with Myself</a></strong></em>, released worldwide in 22 editions and 20 languages, includes letters written in his prison cell to pages from the unfinished sequel to his autobiography, <em>Long Walk to Freedom</em>. The book launched in October 2010.</li> <li> <div style="padding-left: 30px"><strong>For more content, read:</strong></div></li> <li> <div style="padding-left: 30px"><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2011/01/11/10-remarkable-career-comebacks/"><strong>10 Remarkable Career Comebacks</strong></a></div></li> <li> <div style="padding-left: 30px"><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2011/01/27/10-books-off-russell-simmons-bookshelf/"><strong>10 Great Reads From Russell Simmons' Bookshelf</strong></a></div></li> <li> <div style="padding-left: 30px"><a href="http://www.blackenterprise.com/2011/01/28/jay-z-marketing-power-decoded/"><strong>Jay-Z's Marketing Power Decoded</strong></a></div></li> </ul>
- <strong>1993 Nobel Peace Prize Winner</strong> <ul> <li>The former South African president won the award with <strong>Frederick Willem de Klerk</strong> for their efforts to change South African society.</li> </ul>
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA: African National Congress (ANC) President Nelson Mandela's colleagues shown in a file photo dated 15 October 1993 congratulating Mandela (R) at his office in Johannesburg after he won the Nobel Peace Prize which was jointly attributed to South African President F.W. De Klerk (Photo credit should read WALTER DHLADHLA/AFP/Getty Images)
- <strong>Mr. President</strong> <ul> <li>After Mandela’s release, he resumed his leadership position in the <strong>African National Congress</strong> <strong>(ANC)</strong>. He later went on to become the country’s first Black president in South Africa’s first multicultural election, in 1994.</li> </ul>
- <strong>Mandela Takes a Bow</strong> <ul> <li>In June of 1999, the oldest elected president of South Africa retires from the presidency and continues his involvement in different social and human rights initiatives. He was succeeded by <strong>Thabo Mbeki</strong>. A few years later, in 2004, he vows to step out of the public sphere.</li> </ul>
PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA: Outgoing South African President Nelson Mandela (R) waves as he arrives for the inauguration of Thabo Mbeki (R) as second democratically elected President of the Republic of South Africa at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, 16 June 1999. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO ODD ANDERSEN (Photo credit should read ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images)
- <strong>Prison Break</strong> <ul> <li>On February 11, 1990, Mandela was freed from prison after serving 27 years behind bars in Victor-Verster Prison in Paarl, near Cape Town. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964 for treason, so the release came as a surprise. Few can forget the image of him walking hand-in-hand with his then-wife, <strong>Winnie</strong>, into the surrounding pack of overjoyed supporters. He later addressed a crowd of 50,000 people on the balcony of Cape Town’s City Hall. "Our struggle has reached a decisive moment. Our march to freedom is irreversible,” Mandela said.</li> </ul>
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