Nelson Mandela fought endlessly to end living in an apartheid community, and end repression in South Africa.  Nelson Mandela was born in Madiba clan in the village of Mvezo, Transkei, on 18 July 1918. Mandela’s parents were Nonqaphi Nosekeni, which is his mother and his father is Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela. When Mandela was 9 years old, his father died of lung disease, which caused his life to change drastically. Chief Jongintaba Dalindyebo adopted Mandela. Jongitaba did that as a gesture as a favor to Mandela’s father, who, years earlier, had said Jongintaba be made chief.

When Mandela was 16 it was time for him to take part in the African traditions to mark his entrance into manhood. He welcomed the opportunity to part take in his people’s custom and felt ready to make the transition from boyhood to manhood.  In 1939 Mandela enrolled at the University college of Fort Hare. University was the higher learning for blacks in South Africa. Fort Hare was considered Africa’s equivalent of the University of Oxford or Harvard University. Mandela’s second year at Fort Hare, his was elected student representative council. During this election, a majority of students voted to boycott unless their demands were met.

Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1942. For 20 years he regulated a peaceful campaign. Which was a nonviolent defiance against the South African Government and the racist policies.  The protested for free and compulsory education for all children, etc. In 1956, Mandela and 150 other members were arrested and charged with treason, which is the offense of acting to overthrow one's government or to harm or kill its sovereign, for their political advocacy. Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years. During that time he had contracted Tuberculosis and, as a black political prisoner, received the lowest level of treatment from prison workers due to menial working prisoners. In 1985, President P.W. Botha offered Mandela’s release in exchange for renouncing armed struggle; the prisoner rejected the offer. Some Prison workers were Bantu and agreed with Mandela’s campaign with was considered a passive resistance. Later on Nelson Mandela was elected as president in 1994. South African   President F.W. de klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.  He was free and no longer on surveillance and free to live. On December 5,2013, at the age of 95, Nelson Mandela died at his home in Johannesburg, South Africa.  Nelson Mandela will continue to be a source of inspiration for civil rights activists worldwide.