Nelson Mandela
Learn about Nelson Mandela — the anti-apartheid revolutionary who spent 27 years in prison and emerged to become South Africa's first Black president and a global icon of justice.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (1918–2013) is one of the 20th century's most revered figures — a man who endured 27 years of imprisonment for fighting racial injustice and emerged to lead South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy with a spirit of reconciliation rather than revenge. His life embodies the possibility of moral leadership in politics.
Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1944 and initially pursued nonviolent resistance against apartheid. After the Sharpeville massacre of 1960, when police killed 69 peaceful protesters, Mandela co-founded the ANC's armed wing. He was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964. His decades on Robben Island made him the world's most famous political prisoner and a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle.
Released on February 11, 1990, Mandela led negotiations with President F.W. de Klerk to dismantle apartheid peacefully. He was elected South Africa's first Black president in 1994 in the country's first fully democratic elections. Rather than pursuing retribution, he championed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and worked to build a multiracial 'Rainbow Nation.' Mandela's presidency (1994–1999) was imperfect — critics note he did not address economic inequality aggressively enough — but his moral example of forgiveness and reconciliation transcended South African politics to inspire the world.