Chapter 8

Free Mandela

The years at Robben Island never broke Nelson's spirit. He never stopped
believing that South Africa could change. He exercised each morning and
read every evening. He studied law through the mail. He learned Afrikaner
history and language. The darkest time for him in prison was when he was
forbidden to study. This lasted four years. But Nelson was determined, and
he passed his intermediate law exams when he was forty-five years old.

There was one bright spot in prison life: friendship. Prisoners were forbidden
to talk, but they found ways. They whispered as they worked in the quarries
and passed secret notes hidden in the dirty dishes. They even organized
work slowdowns and went on hunger strikes. Mandela might be in prison, but
he was still a tree shaker! Of all his friends in prison, Walter Sisulu was the
person he relied on the most. Sisulu was Nelson's sounding board. He
discussed all his ideas for achieving black equality with him. Mandela once
said, "We walked side by side through the valley of death, nursing each
other's bruises, holding each other up when our steps faltered."

Mandela also wrote a five-hundred-page autobiography on smuggled paper.

He buried the pages, wrapped in plastic and hidden in cocoa containers, all
over the prison courtyard. He encouraged other prisoners to study and learn,
too. And although Nelson was a leader, younger prisoners were amazed at
his humility.

Prison life was very difficult for Nelson. When illness prevented him from
working in the quarry he was locked in a wet, cold, solitary cell apart from his
friends. All he was given to eat was rice and water.

Meanwhile, Oliver Tambo was still traveling around the world telling everyone
about Mandela and the fight against apartheid. He met with civil rights
groups and government leaders. He set up international chapters of the ANC.
World leaders who recognized him as the face of the new South Africa began
to call for Mandela's release. Tambo also organized revolutionary fighters
from training camps in nearby Tanzania and [Link] moved the fighters
to Angola, on the Border of a province controlled by South [Link] sent a
message to the white government of South Africa: The ANC was willing to go
to war.

In 1976 the minister of prisoners offered to reduce Mandela's sentence if he

would support the government's latest project, the Homeland System. They
hoped to use Mandela's influence to support their own agenda. Mandela said
no. The government tried to tempt him with better deals if he abandoned his
friends. Again, Mandela said no.

Mandela was fifty-eight when the government passed a law declaring that all
schools had to teach difficult subjects like math and science in the Afrikaans
language. Most black children couldn't even understand Afrikaans, and had
come to think of it as the language of their oppressors. So how did they have
a chance of learning anything? Once again, the government was finding
ways to further deny black students a decent education.

THE HOMELAND SYSTEM

IN 1970 THE SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT DIVIDED SOUTH AFRICA INTO

SEPARATE STATES BY RACE. UNDER THE NEW ARRANGEMENT, CALLED THE
HOMELAND SYSTEM, BLACK PEOPLE WOULD NO LONGER BE CITIZENS OF
SOUTH AFRICA. THEY WOULD COME INTO SOUTH AFRICA ON TEMPORARY
WORK PERMITS TO DO THEIR JOBS. BLACK PEOPLE WHO REFUSED TO LIVE IN
THE HOMELAND ASSIGNED TO THEM-PLACES THEY HAD OFTEN NEVER EVEN
BEEN TO BEFORE-WERE MOVED AGAINST THEIR WILL. BUT THESE
"INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES" WOULD NEVER BE OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED BY
THE REST OF THE WORLD.

A group in the Soweto Township organized a protest. Ten thousand students

participated. Some were only six years old. Yet the police opened fire on
them. The township of Soweto became a battleground. Once again dead
bodies filled the streets, many of them children. Their parents joined the
fight. The fire of protest lit in Soweto spread to other townships. The riots
went on for sixteen months before they were crushed. Nearly one thousand
people died and 5,980 were arrested. The police did not lose a single man .
man.

On Robben Island there were so many new prisoners that it was easier to
keep everyone locked in their cells rather than make them work.

However, it did not matter how many civil- rights leaders were sent to prison.
New leaders, such as Steve Biko, always came forward to take their place.
Biko established a health clinic and community programs as well as classes
in practical skills aimed at making black South Africans independent.

Steve Biko was arrested several times for his work. In 1977 he had been in
police custody for twenty-five days when police announced he had died in his
cell from going on a hunger strike. (A hunger strike is when someone refuses
to eat to protest an injustice.) The truth was that Biko had been beaten and
then left to die chained in his cell. No one was ever charged with his murder.

Police tried to prevent people from attending Steve Biko's funeral in King
William's Town in Eastern Cape on September 25, 1977. But twenty thousand
black citizens and many white people, too, came to pay their respects. The
United States and twelve other western countries sent representatives to
attend. Protesters in other countries wanted their governments and other
institutions to stop trade with South Africa. The pressure on the white South
Africans was mounting. Nelson Mandela was a symbol of hope for a better
South Africa. He was the best known of all the activists. In 1980 the
Johannesburg Sunday Post, a black newspaper, printed a petition to release
him. The headline read: FREE MANDELA.

Would the government listen?

Chapter 9

State of Emergency
South Africa was going bankrupt, because so many foreign businesses would
have nothing to do with the country. Riots broke out regularly. So the
government made some changes. They desegregated public buses and
theaters and gave some townships electricity. They let Indian and "colored"
citizens elect people to represent them in the government-but not in the
chamber of parliament that represented the white citizens. Many Afrikaner
voters were angry at the changes, while many nonwhites didn't see much of
a difference.

Nelson Mandela did see a difference in his own life. In April 1982, Mandela
was moved to Pollsmoor prison near Cape Town. For the first time in decades,
he had a bed. Many believed Mandela had been moved in order to separate
him from most of his Robben Island friends. This way Mandela couldn't have
as much influence, couldn't cause as much trouble.

The president of South Africa said he was willing to free Nelson if he came
out against violence as a way of ending apartheid. When Mandela heard the
offer he wrote out his answer and gave it to his daughter Zindzi. She read it
in a crowded stadium in Soweto. It was the first time that Mandela's words
had been heard legally in public since he'd been sent to prison.

Mandela wrote: "Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into
contracts. Your freedom and mine cannot be separated." Nelson would not
accept freedom if it required him to support apartheid in any way.

In September 1989, fifty-three- year-old F. W. de Klerk was elected president

of South Africa. Although he was a Nat Party leader, de Klerk had promised to
negotiate with the ANC to solve South Africa's problems. De Klerk had Sisulu
and others released from Robben Island. He had Mandela brought to meet
with him in December. Two months later de Klerk announced the ANC was no
longer an illegal group. Then he made an even bigger announcement: Nelson
Mandela was going to be released from prison!
Slide 1: Title Slide

 Title: Nelson Mandela: The Journey to Freedom

 Subtitle: A Presentation on His Life and Legacy

 Visual: Picture of Nelson Mandela waving or a South African flag

background

📖 Slide 2: Introduction

 Who was Nelson Mandela?

o Anti-apartheid revolutionary

o Former President of South Africa (1994–1999)

o Symbol of peace and justice

 Quote: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to
change the world.”

 Visual: Photo of Mandela with a child or a book

Slide 3: Years on Robben Island

 Life in Prison:

o Hard labor in the limestone quarry

o Studied law by correspondence

o Wrote his autobiography on smuggled paper

 Friendship & Unity:

o Closest ally: Walter Sisulu

o Organized hunger strikes and work slowdowns

 Quote: “We walked side by side through the valley of death, nursing
each other's bruises.”
  Visual: Prison bars, Robben Island, Mandela & Sisulu together

Slide 4: The Homeland System

 What was the Homeland System?

o Divided South Africa into race-based states

o Black South Africans stripped of citizenship

o Forced relocations

 Protests Erupt:

o Soweto Uprising (1976) – 10,000 students protested

o Brutal police response: nearly 1,000 killed, many children

 Visual: Map of homelands, photo from Soweto protests, newspaper

headline

Slide 5: Steve Biko & Black Consciousness Movement

 Who was Steve Biko?

o Anti-apartheid activist, leader of Black Consciousness

o Established clinics and community programs

 Biko’s Death (1977):

o Arrested, tortured, and killed by police

o Global outrage at his murder

 Quote: “It is better to die for an idea that will live than to live for an
idea that will die.” – Steve Biko

 Visual: Photo of Biko, protest banners, Biko's funeral with 20,000

attendees

Slide 6: Global Pressure & The Call to Free Mandela

 International Boycotts:

o Sanctions against South Africa

 o Protests around the world demanding Mandela’s release

 Oliver Tambo’s Role:

o Traveled the world spreading the ANC’s message

o Pressured governments to cut ties with South Africa

 Johannesburg Sunday Post (1980):

o Headline: FREE MANDELA

 Visual: Protest crowds, “Free Mandela” posters, newspaper clipping

🚪 Slide 7: Mandela’s Refusal to Compromise

 Government Offers Deals:

o Offered release if he renounced violence

o Mandela refused: “Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot

enter into contracts.”

 Visual: Photo of Zindzi Mandela reading her father’s letter to a

stadium crowd

🤝 Slide 8: Meeting with F.W. de Klerk

 Who was F.W. de Klerk?

o President of South Africa (1989)

o Promised reforms and dialogue with the ANC

 Big Changes:

o Legalized the ANC

o Released Walter Sisulu and other political prisoners

o Announced Mandela’s upcoming release

 Visual: Mandela and de Klerk shaking hands

🌟 Slide 9: Mandela’s Release (February 11, 1990)

  After 27 Years in Prison:

o Mandela walks free, greeted by cheering crowds

o Calls for peace and reconciliation

 Visual: Iconic image of Mandela raising his fist upon release

🌿 Slide 10: Mandela’s Legacy

 Achievements:

o Became South Africa’s first Black president (1994)

o Promoted peace and forgiveness

o Won the Nobel Peace Prize (1993)

 Quote: “I have walked that long road to freedom... I have discovered

that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more
hills to climb.”

 Visual: Mandela with the Nobel Peace Prize, smiling with children

💡 Slide 11: Conclusion

 Mandela’s Impact: A life of courage, sacrifice, and hope

 His Message to the World: Justice, equality, and forgiveness

 Final Quote: “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but
in rising every time we fall.”

 Visual: A collage of Mandela’s life moments

Slide 1: Title Slide

Title: Nelson Mandela: The Long Walk to Freedom

Subtitle: A Presentation on His Life and Legacy

Visual: Picture of Nelson Mandela with the South African flag

👶 Slide 2: Early Life

Born: July 18, 1918, in Mvezo, South Africa

Childhood name: Rolihlahla (meaning "troublemaker")

Studied law at the University of Fort Hare

Joined the African National Congress (ANC) in 1944

Visual: Picture of young Mandela

✊ Slide 3: Fight Against Apartheid

Apartheid: System of racial segregation in South Africa

Co-founded the ANC Youth League

Organized protests and boycotts against discriminatory laws

Believed in non-violent resistance at first but later supported armed struggle

Quote: “I have walked that long road to freedom... But I can only rest for a
moment, for with freedom comes responsibility.”

Visual: Anti-apartheid protest photo

Slide 4: Imprisonment on Robben Island

Arrested in 1962, sentenced to life imprisonment for sabotage

Spent 18 years on Robben Island

Hard labor in the limestone quarry

Studied law by correspondence

Smuggled out his autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom

Quote: “I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on
trying.”

Visual: Photo of Mandela's prison cell

🔥 Slide 5: Soweto Uprising & Global Support

Soweto Uprising (1976): Students protested against Afrikaans in schools

Police opened fire—many children died

Global movements called to Free Mandela

Oliver Tambo spread awareness worldwide

Visual: Soweto protest image and “Free Mandela” campaign posters

🤝 Slide 6: Release and Reconciliation

Released from prison on February 11, 1990, after 27 years

Worked with President F.W. de Klerk to end apartheid

Won the Nobel Peace Prize (1993) with de Klerk

Quote: “As I walked out the door toward freedom, I knew that if I didn’t leave
my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.”

Visual: Mandela’s release photo

🌈 Slide 7: Presidency and Legacy

Became South Africa’s first Black President in 1994

Promoted truth, reconciliation, and equality

Focused on education, healthcare, and peace

Retired in 1999, but continued humanitarian work

Visual: Mandela voting in 1994

💡 Slide 8: Impact and Inspiration

A global symbol of justice, peace, and forgiveness

Inspired movements for human rights worldwide

His birthday, July 18, is celebrated as Mandela Day

Quote: “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising
every time we fall.”

Visual: Nelson Mandela with children

🎉 Slide 9: Conclusion

Nelson Mandela’s life teaches us about courage, persistence, and

compassion

His legacy reminds us that one person can change the world

Final Quote: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”