Reflections on Rolihlahla

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela is the most revered being with whom I hold the utmost admiration. He is my Warrior-Chieftan, my hero. Not only him but all of his comrades like Oliver Tambo, Desmond Tutu, Walter Sisilu, Govan Mbeki and all the other countless and unsung heroes who contributed and and sacrificed for the abolishment of apartheid.

I do not know why I chose this piece of history but it has something to do with music to begin with. When I was younger, my oldest brother, whom I always have adored and looked up to, used to discuss music and bands with me frequently. He bought me the 'Graceland' CD by Paul Simon, and proceeded to explain how Paul Simon had changed the face of Africa by becoming involved politically with the Anti-Apartheid movement by encompassing the SA musical group "Ladysmith Black Mambazo" into his band. Apparently Graceland, to this day, is still one of the most critically acclaimed albums in the world. Not only did I love the music of it, but the history written inside the front cover intrigued and stayed with me for years to come. Africa always had an exotic lull to me since that time. Even Mohandas Gandhi was inspired by South Africa and began his fight on that very same soil that the ANC finished so many years later. Along with Stephen Biko and Martin Luther King, Gandhi was a source of inspiration to Mandela to stand up for the rights of the oppressed.

I could carry on for days but will simply say that I honestly, am embarrassed to be of Caucasian heritage. Our ancestors did us no favours by trying to leverage themselves through the oppression of others. That mindset still lives in so many of us today. There is an unspoken hierarchy that remains with skin color and socioeconomic status, as if it is an inherent to us as seeking food when hungry. I feel we have been born with it, believing we are superior to be a man, tall, Caucasian, wealthy, scholared, beautiful. How ludicrous.

Mandela was one who not only fought against suppression of the African people, but against oppression of any kind.

I'll end with a few of my favourite quotes from him:

..."For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others" - written on the wall of tears - a fountain at the Apartheid Museum f Jo'burg that I visited in May08

"I stand here before you not as a prophet but as a humble servant of you, the people. Your tireless and heroic sacrifices have made it possible for me to be here today. I therefore place the remaining years of my life in your hands." (stated on the day of his release Feb 1990).

"During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for. But, my lord, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

There never will be a man on this earth, to me, that was so grounded, so real and has done so much. He was void of the god-like qualities of the Dalai Lama and others, but has achieved that and more.

I cannot express how much I love this man, his comrades and all I have learned from them. There are many more out there that I am to learn from but alas, I have only have so much time on this earth, to read, to listen, to learn.

One past ANC leader said it the best on Madiba's 90th birthday when he stated:

"If aliens visited our planet and said, 'take us to your leader'", the world would bring them to you."