On February 11, 1990, after intense pressure and boycotting from the international community, Nelson Mandela was released unconditionally by the South African fascist government after spending 27 years behind bars for his resistance against the apartheid regime.
“May your goals reflect your hopes, not your fears.”
He was sent to prison for believing in what was right and for fighting for the freedom of his people. Even after 27 years of injustice, he never lost os focus. I wonder if he came up with powerful thoughts when he was still behind bars.
If he did, he was correct. He dreamed of freedom and planned to lead South Africa toward a more just and united future.
He was elected president on May 9, 1994, at the age of 75, becoming the nation’s first Black head of state.
He served a single term and stepped down in 1999.
Good times, indeed.
If you lived through the 1980s and 1990s, you might agree with me: there was something special about those years, and I’m not just talking about music and pop culture; it seems the whole civilization was on the right track, heading toward a better future.
- In 1980, Lech Wałęsa and the Solidarity Movement showed the world that communist rule in Poland could be defied.
- In 1982, the British Navy conducted a flawless military campaign to expel the Argentine invaders from the Falkland Islands.
- In 1985, Regan and Gorbachev began a series of meetings in which the two sat down and talked not like enemies, but like two guys sharing a common goal: saving the world from a nuclear apocalypse.
- On November 09, 1989, German citizens from both sides climbed atop the Berlin Wall, danced at the Brandenburg Gate, and started chipping away at the concrete with hammers and picks, officially marking the end of the Soviet Union.
- And, of course, in 1994, when Mandela was elected president of South Africa.
I’m not claiming those days were perfect. We experienced our fair share of injustice then, but it seemed like people and world leaders had more goodwill. Sadly, all that goodwill has vanished. Most of what we see around us now is evil, greed, and corruption.
Maybe common sense will come through once more. We must keep dreaming and planning, even if we are living in fear.
“Make the World Great Again.”
