Nelson Mandela

(http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/art-73173/Nelson-Mandela)

Nelson Mandela was born 18 July 1918. (Wikipedia, 2007) Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist and leader of the African National Congress. Apartheid was a system of racial segregation in South Africa that legally classified people into racial groups and separated them from one another on a basis of race. Mandela advocated peace, freedom and equality for all people. On August 5, 1962, (ANC, 2007) Mandela was arrested after living on the run for seventeen months. He spent 27 years in prison and while he was there he studied through the University of London by correspondence and received a Bachelor of Laws degree. In 1985, (Wikipedia, 2007) "President P.W. Botha offered Mandela conditional release in return for renouncing armed struggle." Mandela declined the offer because nothing had been done to eliminate apartheid.

Mandela visits a school in Johannesburg, 1993

He was finally released in 1990 (Wikipedia, 2007) and soon went to work on helping establish a multi-racial democracy in South Africa. In 1993 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the termination of the apartheid regime and laying the foundations for a democratic South Africa. In 1994 (Nelson Mandela Foundation, 2007) the first democratic elections were held and Mandela was elected the President of South Africa.

Mandela continues his work by being involved with many organizations and groups, from fighting AIDS to assisting those in need. He is a hero to me because he has been through so many trials and tribulations and still came out on top. He made many sacrifices for what he believed in and they paid off. Mandela battled against one of the toughest issues facing the world today and did it peacefully and successfully, providing a better life for the people in his country and truly making the world a better place.