Nelson Mandela was a man that inspired the world to become better human beings. Mandela, a prominent figure in South Africa and the world, passed away on December 5, 2013. Most teens and children today don’t realize what Nelson Mandela accomplished in his life and his significant importance because we weren’t alive during his personal struggles in Africa.

“His passing is extremely important because of his influence not only on South Africa but his impact on the rest of the world,” history teacher Nate Uttaro said.

Beginning in 1944, Mandela was a part of the African National Congress, which tried to overthrow the current government system called the Afrikaner National Party. The Afrikaners established a system called Apartheid which was a rigid separation of races. Non-white citizens had cards that told them where they could eat, live, and play.  They were stripped of their rights and forced to become segregated from many activities that they once were able to do.

Mandela organized several events and protests against the government where he started to gain respect from fellow Africans in South Africa. He became so widely known that the government officials realized that he was trying to put an end to their government and arrested him on several occasions.

Every time Mandela was arrested it seemed that he was only getting closer and closer to gaining human rights for the people of South Africa.

Mandela was arrested for allegedly planning to use violence to overthrow the government in 1964. The innocent Mandela served jail time for 26 years only to be released in 1990. While in jail his movements still continued, and because of his impact, the Afrikaners that were in control started to change for good.

Once released, he ran in the first free election and became the first black President of South Africa in 1994.

We can all learn something from Nelson Mandela. We can learn to stand up and always try to do the right things and not to back away if it doesn’t go your way at first. It took courage for Mandela to go to jail for what he believed in and something he didn’t do.

It was men like Nelson Mandela that inspired great black leaders such as Martin Luther King and President Barack Obama to change the culture in America and all over the world. It’s ironic that on Christmas Day, a day of celebration, a movie on Nelson Mandela is coming out. The movie celebrates his life and will inspire you to be the change in the world.

He is one of the greatest leaders of the 20^th century, and his death was very mournful to see but he lived a great 95 years, full of achievements that are hard to compare to and will inspire generations.