Los Angeles, California
January 3, 2014
(Today's date)
December 18, 2013
(Original date)
*Denotes change or new infomation added to original blog after completion of original blog.
**UPDATE (Denotes NEW infomation added AFTER original blog has been completed)
The Honorable Nelson "Madiba" Mandela has now passed away and has been buried. I cannot add anything more to what has already been said about Madiba, so I will merely comment on what I believe was his greatest display of strength, integrity, and dignity. That is, when he had an opportunity to leave the South African jail, where he was placed in isolation for much of the time, he chose not to in the interest of the potential freedom of black South African citizens. Although Mandela spent 27 years in prison, he didn't have to stay that long. He was offered the opportunity to leave prison on several occasions, if only he would denounce violence. He refused to do so. The strength aspect was simply to remain in prison and endure the prison conditions, when he didn't have to, when he could have gone home to family, friends, and the struggle. The integrity aspect came into play when he said no to denouncing violence, knowing that he would remain in prison for doing so, but also knowing that he could have deceptively gotten out to perpetuate any violence that he had deceptively denounced. In other words, Madiba could have agreed to denounce violence, while knowing inside himself that he had no intention to do so, and after being released, commence to perpetuate the very violence that he had denounced. But that way, while allowing him to be free of prison and free to assist with the struggle, would have been absent integrity and dignity, and most likely, respect from the world.
But Mandela didn't do what he did out of any concern for respect from the world; he did what he did because that was who he was. Madiba was a special man.
Much is made of Mandela's capacity to forgive, especially by white people, and most especially by white South Africans, because that capacity allowed white South Africans to continue to maintain its economic and/or financial, i.e., monetary, power or control over black South Africans, even though the white dominant government was purportedly supposed to be turning over majority control to the majority black population; but, I do not place as much value on that aspect of Mandela's greatness as I do other aspects or manifestations of his greatness, because his capacity to forgive does not seem to have achieved a significant objective in the struggle for civil and human rights of black South Africans. That is, while one should have the capacity to forgive, the extent of forgiveness, in the context of the South African civil rights movement, should not go beyond the call for equality and decency. While Mandela might have forgiven the white minority government for its inhumane treatment of black South Africans, in their own country (where they are the majority), including poverty, homelessness, killings and/or murders, rapes, etc., that forgiveness should not cause the black majority to not take drastic steps to cure their civil rights ills, such as correcting some of those things I have just identified.
I believe Mandela's deep capacity for forgiveness may have served to delay any achievement of complete civil rights for black South Africans. But, this is not a criticism of Mandela, it is merely an observation of what I see as the white minority of South Africa benefiting from Mandela's generous extension of forgiveness to the demise of the down-trotten and improvished black South Africans. "People speak of Mandela's 'foregiveness' much as they speak of Martin Luther King's 'dream'. Can forgiveness be poured from a can of tinned milk to comfort the hungry child in the shanty? Is forgiveness a simple rhetorical term for those South Africans who are moving on up, and a broken promise for those who remain on the ground?" Los Angeles Wave, "Voices", "Mandela's long road to freedom", Julianne Malveaux, December 12, 2013. *"It is not clear when the economic gap in South Africa will be closed, or even narrowed. In many ways, black South Africans control the political sphere, while the white business establishments control the money, just as is the case in several cities in the U.S. South.". Id.
But, let me get back to the greatness and "specialness" of Madiba.
While I continue to state that I can't add much to what has already been said about this great man, I must mention a few things that have already been said in order to demonstrate how he set the stage for the "new" war on racial discrimination in the United States and California. "Nelson Mandela's resolve was to dismantle a system of racial oppression. And that he did. In dismantling apartheid, he dismantled his enemies." Id., "The resolve of Nelson Mandela", Anthony A. Samad, December 12, 2013. "Nelson Mandela saved South Africa from itself. The prisoner-to-president story of Nelson Mandela is one of the greatest in the history of mankind. It is a story of the power of resolve." Id. So, like the resolve of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.(who was also incarcerated multiple times), this helps set the stage for some of our young Black people, especially our young Black males, who are or have been incarcerated or imprisoned. It helps them understand that they should not allow that imprisonment or incarceration to prevent them from trying to achieve goals, especially civil rights goals, and especially if their incarceration was due to civil rights struggles. It is not probable that they can achieve the office of President of the United States with a felony conviction, but it is absolutely probable that they can achieve other, lesser, goals, and Mandela's journey supports that.
"Mandela was among the ANC (African National Congress), the head of its political arm, and a chief negotiator for the dignity of (the) black majority. He, and others, were arrested for trying to sabotage the government, a crime punishable by death. Nelson Mandela had the wisdom then to use his trial, to put South African apartheid on trial. He knew the world would be watching and in an era of the assassinations of heads of state, he knew the possibility of death was real." Id. This helps set the stage for future leaders of the WRD, and Christopher Dorner was the first leader because he had that strait. Dorner did not fear death and he was prepared to die. And he did. "With its racial politics on the world stage, South Africa chose not to kill Mandela and add to his martyrdom." Id. Christopher Dorner was killed because the white establishment knew that had Dorner lived, racial discrimination in California would have been put on trial. But, the white establishment did not recognize Dorner as a martyr. Unfortunately, for the civil rights movement, neither did enough Black people. So, Mandela set the stage for future WRD leaders to recognize that as leaders in the WRD, they must be prepared to die. Aaron Alexis met this standard as well. And he also died.
Finally,"The isolation Mandela was to endure at Robben Island, the apartheid government's barren penal colony, did not make the world forget him. It made it remember him--as the talk of decolonization and freedom filled the air in Black Africa; and the talk of freedom and equal rights filled the air in the United States, and in South Africa." Id., "The indispensable Nelson Mandela", Lee Daniels, December 19, 2013. "The white-racist government thought they had destroyed a leader of the freedom movement. How could they know they were doing their part to help create an indispensable man ?" Id. Mandela's "unbreakable commitment to bringing democracy to South Africa (,) became the hallmark of the man. That enabled him to emerge from nearly three decades in prison, as President Barack Obama said in his eulogy, 'as the last great liberator of the 20th century." Id. Mandela's commitment sets the stage for the "new" WRD. It is what is missing from so many of our so-called civil rights leaders of today. For instance, when the NAACP made a request of the Justice Department to pursue a prosecution of George Zimmerman for violating Trayvon Martin's civil rights, there was no commitment to the cause. After the initial request, neither the NAACP nor any other organization placed any pressure on the Justice Department to at least provide a public response to the NAACP's (and some local governments--through resolutions, e.g., Los Angeles and Carson) request. There was no commitment from any civil rights faction in the country to require a public response from the Justice Department or to require a justification for not prosecuting Zimmerman. And, clearly there was a basis for doing so. Thus, the Justice Department decided to quietly and secretly not prosecute Zimmerman without any public reaction. This was a civil rights failure, based on a lack of commitment to the cause. So, if the new WRD is to be successful, there must be commitment; the type of commitment that Madiba demonstrated on the way to the liberation of South Africa.
"Nelson Mandela's existence as a living being was irreplaceable, vital, urgent, requisite and all other such synonyms for 'indispensable.' Now, it's essential that we, his survivors, understand that the qualities that made him indispensable are still available to inspire us." Id. I am inspired and I will forever play some role in the WRD towards complete eradication of racial discrimination in the United States and California (and hopefully, the world).
Peace be with you, Madiba, and may you forever rest in peace.
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