#RIPNelsonMandela

Winston Zeddemore - Contributing Writer

Who was Nelson Mandela?
Was he the face of anti apartheid, the embodiment of the war against the institutionalized racism that was South Africa? He was indeed a revolutionary; working as he educated himself as a lawyer while actively campaigning against apartheid.
Who was the non violent Nelson Mandela, that turned to leadership in the militant MK and was convicted of trying to overthrow the South African government by violent means?

Sentenced to 27 years for his "treason", we knew him as the symbol of injustice. The politically astute white haired intellectual that inspired musicians to pen "Free Nelson Mandela" (back in the 80's when MTV played music) eventually changed the political tide, and the international community began actively rallying against this colonial throwback of a national policy and cheered when it collapsed.
Who was Nelson Mandela?
He became the face of reconciliation and worked his celebrity and integrity to become an architect to an historic non violent transition that established multiracial elections just four years after his release from prison.
In his own words, Mandela described himself as the grandfather of the new South Africa and his country in turn elected him as the first black president in that 1994 election.
Nelson Mandela lived a hard 95 years, yet like few in the 20th century (Mother Teresa and Gandhi come to mind) he filled a void that struck a chord with the planet as only legends do.
Mandela once said, "If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart"
Who was Nelson Mandela? He was the moral center of that conversation.