ABSTRACT
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was the primary leader of the decades-long antiapartheid movement in South Africa which opposed the systematic segregation and subjugation of Black Africans by an all-White minority. He led a largely peaceful, but sometimes violent, movement to establish equal rights for all South Africans and was imprisoned for 27 years for his activities. He sponsored negotiation and reconciliation with the dominating and often ruthless White minority and led the transformation toward a democracy for all races in South Africa. He eventually became the president of that country in the fi rst truly representative democratic election with all South Africans’ participation.
