International Nelson Mandela Day

International Nelson Mandela Day was recognized yesterday, July 18th.

In honor of this day, we look to a few of his lasting impacts.

Much of his work focused on his home country of South Africa. At the time of his birth, South Africa was ruled by apartheid, a system of racially grounded discrimination. Mandela became the first black and democratically elected President of South Africa, leading the country away from apartheid.

Mandela worked to break down the tension and conflict between the white and black people of South Africa. He worked to unite the country on the basis that all people are one connected unit.

Mandela was influential in the fight against HIV/AIDS in South Africa. In 2000, he delivered a speech at an International AIDS conference in which he called for bold measures to be taken to combat HIV/AIDS.

Education was also a significant part of Mandela’s life, as he made a point to continue learning and educating himself throughout his entire life.

Additionally, Mandela wanted to ensure quality education for all children because education was very important to him. He believed this was crucial in the face of so many barriers keeping children from education, such as gender disparity, poverty, and armed conflict.

In 1999, Mandela established the Nelson Mandela Foundation, which continued the work he started before his passing in 2018. Through a partnership with UNICEF, the Schools for Africa campaign, the foundation has given an education to over 30 million kids who may not have received one otherwise.

The foundation also continues to preserve Mandela’s legacy and inspire others to fulfill the responsibility that Mandela believed each person has: to make an impact through public service. 

The foundation’s website says that Mandela had three rules that he lived by:

“Free yourself. Free others. Serve every day.”

The purpose of this internationally recognized day is to remind people of their responsibility to work towards a better future, even if that involves personal sacrifice. It inspires mobilization towards a better world through activism and holding each other accountable. 

It is a needed push towards doing our part to make the world a better place not only for ourselves but for those around us, as we are all one connected community.