Madiba A to Z

Table Of Contents

Athlete
Physical discipline. Boxer, tennis player. His admiration for athletes.
 
Bully: “Wild Branches”
Early days and “wild branches”—conflicts with ANC leaders. Lessons learned.
 
Comrade
How “comradeship” helped him and his fellow prisoners cope with their long years of incarceration.
 
Diplomat
His role in fashioning a diplomatic compromise and avoiding a race war.
 
Eloquent
Life as a lawyer. Written statements, letters, and speeches that inspired millions.
 
Forgiveness
Empathy for Afrikaners, and faith in peace and reconciliation.
 
Global
An international outlook. Global travel and the ability to galvanize support worldwide.

 
Humble
Origins and an austere lifestyle. Making his own bed. Interest in the lives of ordinary people.

 
Indigenous
Xhosa traditions, and the abiding interest in and connection to people of all races and ethnic identities.

 
Jailed
Prison years. How he coped, how he led.
 
Kafkaesque
The treason and Rivonia Trials. Prison regulations and his responses to them.
How the law was used to legalize inhumanity.
 
Love and Loss
His search for love, his flirtatiousness, marriages, love of Winnie, love of children, of family. The measure of the price he paid with his years in prison away from them all.

 
Militant
From his days in the ANC Youth League to launching Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the ANC.
 
Negotiator
Dealings with internal conflicts and external threats. Outreach to whites and other minorities.

 
Onward
His philosophy and commitment to creating a new future for his country. His optimism and concern for peace in Africa and the world.

 
President
How he was elected and his term in office.
 
Questions
The questions people around the world ask most frequently about Nelson Mandela.

 
Recognition
The world recognizes and honors Madiba, but what does he think of this adulation? How does Madiba see and recognize himself?
 
Stalwart
Standing up for his beliefs. Fighting for the poor and those afflicted with AIDS.
 
Terrorist
He helped push a nonviolent movement into armed struggle. Was he a terrorist?
 
Unknown
There are many sides to Mandela that many do not know. 
 
Voices Raised up in Song
The power of music and praise poetry in the Mandela story, seen through the eyes of two of his favorite artists.

 
Waiting
Millions waited years for Mandela’s release after twenty-seven and a half years of incarceration.
The wait continued, even on the day he left prison.

 
X Factor
The role of external pressure in winning South African’s liberation and the need, even now, for rebirth away from the old ways.

 
Youth
Youth made the revolution, and Mandela began as a youth leader.
 
Zuid-Afrika to .za
As it becomes clearer that enormous challenges remain, the country evolves from the Zuid-Afrika of Dutch origin to its Internet domain .za—and beyond.