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Nelson Mandela's Life HistoryBy Cheyenne Cartwright

eHow Contributing Writer

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Nelson Mandela has been active in South African politics for more than 50 years, beginning with his membership in theAfrican National Congress (ANC) and culminating in his election to the presidency of South Africa in 1994. Imprisoned by theruling National Party from 1964 to 1990, he emerged to spearhead the movement to end apartheid and restore social justiceand reconciliation in that country.

OriginsNelson Mandela, a prominent South African politician who was instrumental in the dismantlement of apartheid, is the son ofthe chief of the Tembu Tribe, Chief Henry Mandela. The younger Mandela was born July 18, 1918, in the town of Transkei.

African National CongressMandela studied at the University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand. He became a lawyer in 1942. In1944, he joined the ANC, a nationalistic group committed to ending white-only rule in South Africa. In 1960, the NationalParty outlawed the ANC and tried many of its members for treason. Mandela was among this number, but was acquitted ofthe charges.

ImprisionmentSpurred by the increasingly oppressive methods the National Party was using against the ANC, Mandela lobbied to create amilitant arm within the congress that would engage in violent resistance to the ruling party's actions. Because of hisparticipation in these efforts, Mandela was arrested, tried, convicted and sentenced to life for attempting to violently destroythe South African government. He was incarcerated from 1964 until 1990, during which time his stature as the leader of theanti-apartheid movement grew dramatically. As a prisoner of conscience, Mandela repeatedly refused to win his freedom bycompromising his belief in a free South Africa.

ReleaseIn 1990, when he had served 26 years in prison and was 71 years old, Mandela was released from prison, in part because ofincreasing international pressure on the South African government to end apartheid. The next year, he assumed thepresidency of the ANC and again took up the struggle to win political power for blacks in South Africa. In 1993, NelsonMandela won the Nobel Peace Prize for these efforts.

Public LifeThough he had serious doubts about running for public office at his age, Mandela ran for, and won, the presidency in SouthAfrica's first democratic elections in 1994. When he stepped down, he helped establish the Nelson Mandela Foundation, anorganization committed to social justice and reconciliation. As of 2009, Mandela is still a vital actor in promoting thefoundation's mission.

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