Nelson
Mandela was one of the leaders to end segregation (apartheid) in South Africa.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964 for trying to overthrow the government
and remained in prison until 1990. During his years in prison he became a symbol
of the anti-apartheid movement that was finding support all around the world.
In 1993 he and the President of South Africa, F. W. De Klerk received the Nobel
Peace Prize for helping to end apartheid and bring justice and reconciliation
to South Africa. The next year, South Africa held its first multiracial election
and Nelson Mandela was elected as president. Nelson Mandela helped set a powerful
example as he stressed healing his nation through reconciliation and forgiveness
instead of retaliation for the injustice that had been done. On his 89th
birthday in July 2007, Nelson Mandela announced that Peter Gabriel and billionaire
entrepreneur Richard Branson would be providing the funding to launch The Elders,
an international group of some of the world's leading social change advocates
like Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson and Muhammad Yunus to address the
planet's most pressing social issues.
