Remembering Madiba,
We have lost a remarkable leader. A man of peace, capable of rising above his own suffering to lead a nation towards reconciliation and unity. Mandela understood one's freedom is achieved only as we help others gain theirs, an awareness that he extended even to those who took away his own freedom for so long... His long journey, and the evolution of the events that led to the remarkable democratization of South Africa, leave many lessons for us all, some of which we will discern slowly, as years go by, with the benefit of distance and time.
To those of you who are graduates of the International Education Policy Program, you share a commitment to advancing educational opportunity around the world. Your work advances the long arc of justice towards the freedom that Mandela's light shone for all, near and afar. I invite you to reflect on Mandela's legacy and to think about how it impacted your life and your commitments, and to share in this blog, for other IEP graduates, some of those reflections to remind us that we follow in Mandela's footsteps on the path towards greater justice, in each others company.
To those of you who are friends, I invite you also to share your thoughts as we honor, together, the memory of a great man.
Here is a video of Mandela's speech at Harvard, as he received an honorary degree in a special convocation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zh8otC-c3s
and this was a report of the Harvard Gazette
http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/09.24/MandelaThrillsT.html
and here is a poem by Maya Angelou on Mandela's departure from this earth.....
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/12/07/249439677/watch-maya-angelous-poem-for-nelson-mandela
Fernando
We have lost a remarkable leader. A man of peace, capable of rising above his own suffering to lead a nation towards reconciliation and unity. Mandela understood one's freedom is achieved only as we help others gain theirs, an awareness that he extended even to those who took away his own freedom for so long... His long journey, and the evolution of the events that led to the remarkable democratization of South Africa, leave many lessons for us all, some of which we will discern slowly, as years go by, with the benefit of distance and time.
To those of you who are graduates of the International Education Policy Program, you share a commitment to advancing educational opportunity around the world. Your work advances the long arc of justice towards the freedom that Mandela's light shone for all, near and afar. I invite you to reflect on Mandela's legacy and to think about how it impacted your life and your commitments, and to share in this blog, for other IEP graduates, some of those reflections to remind us that we follow in Mandela's footsteps on the path towards greater justice, in each others company.
To those of you who are friends, I invite you also to share your thoughts as we honor, together, the memory of a great man.
Here is a video of Mandela's speech at Harvard, as he received an honorary degree in a special convocation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zh8otC-c3s
and this was a report of the Harvard Gazette
http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/09.24/MandelaThrillsT.html
and here is a poem by Maya Angelou on Mandela's departure from this earth.....
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/12/07/249439677/watch-maya-angelous-poem-for-nelson-mandela
Fernando
19 comments:
As a Colombian, I relate deeply to Nelson Mandela's powerful message of forgiveness and reconciliation. I was born and raised in a country that has suffered one of the most prolonged civil conflicts in recent history. As a matter of fact, I cannot recall a single moment of peace, as Colombia's enduring war began long before I was born.
My country, yet again, is attempting to put an end to war via the ongoing peace conversations with FARC at Habana, Cuba. In reflecting upon Mandela's lessons, I cannot help but thinking about the deep polarization plaguing today's debate in Colombia; such division is not hard to explain: conflict is a complex matter. It involves victimization, hatred and trauma. Mandela, no doubt, experienced all of these and was yet able to embody a message of peace and forgiveness.
Knowing, first hand, how challenging this must have been, I pay tribute to his life, and pray that his lessons will enlighten the future of my country.
Mandela was an inspiration to fight injustice, inequality and exclusion. The history of South Africa is a parallel history of many countries in Latin America.
The exclusion, discrimination and racism suffered by indigenous peoples in LA, are similar than the anti ethical and corrupt system of apartheid. I hope the leaders in Guatemala could see Mandela as an example of peace, reconciliation, and development.
Juan de Dios Simon
“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.”
This statement from Nelson Mandela is very meaningful to me. Some times we dream with changing the world. But only very few people can actually do that. Madiba was one of them. Yet, for ordinary people like myself, the challenge is how to live a life full of awareness and meaning.
Awareness about the person who I have next to me right now. Awareness about the importance of caring and respecting each person I find along my day. We can make a difference in the life of people around us, when we realize the power of caring and forgiveness in the simple and concrete situations of everyday life.
Madiba, may your Light shine forever.
Maya Angelou's Poem for Nelson Mandela
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/12/07/249439677/watch-maya-angelous-poem-for-nelson-mandela
I lived and worked in South Africa during the end of Apartheid and what struck me frequently was the loss of hope for the young people of RSA. Shame engulfed these young people in a way this American twentysomething could not imagine. The world felt so small to them at a time I was traveling to every corner. Being intertwined with the lives of both Afrikaner and African friends during the 4 years of negotiations and subsequent multi racial elections was an incredible journey of perspective. In 1994, I watched as my friends be granted a rebirth of experience, value and life in its most raw. Nelson Mandela gave the greatest gift to humans from all cultures and races: the gift of HOPE, of future of opportunity. Thank you, Mandiba. Long live your legacy.
As we reflect on the life and work of Nelson Mandela, there’s no better time to tap into the philosophical energy that underscored his noble actions. Mandela’s act of reconciliation, forgiveness, and sharing is deep rooted in the philosophy of Ubuntu.
Ubuntu is an African worldview stating that our shared humanity is inextricably linked and bound together – such that the one who dehumanizes a fellow human ends up dehumanizing themselves. Ubuntu emphasizes reconciliation, sharing/cooperation, love/empathy, healing and forgiveness.
Nelson Mandela sought to operationalize Ubuntu on a grand scale, beyond the philosophical or theoretical realm. After his release from prison, he helped prevent the reign of brutal bloodbath and anarchy by not just verbally affirming the humanity of those who had dehumanized him and other oppressed South Africans. Mandela championed forgiveness, reconciliation, healing, and sharing in many ways. In fact, Ubuntu was enshrined in South Africa’s Interim Constitution, which stated that: “there is a need for understanding but not for vengeance, a need for reparation but not for retaliation, a need for ubuntu but not for victimization.”
Mandela’s attempt, as the father of modern South Africa, to bring ubuntu to practical politics was not in any way perfect. But he laid a humanist blueprint for a nation that was on the edge. He demonstrated that we can make the world a better place by adopting the principles of ubuntu in our daily lives.
We cannot all be a Mandela. But at least we can strive to live by and mainstream the philosophy that makes him such a celebrated icon. Mainstreaming Ubuntu could spare our fellow humans the kind of conditions that Mandela and his people endured under apartheid; ubuntu could help reduce the burdens of exclusion, poverty, inequity, and lack of opportunities borne by our fellow human beings.
I cannot be a Mandela, but can help practice and propagate the essentials of Ubuntu. So do you. We as individuals need Ubuntu. Post-Mandela South Africa needs Ubuntu. Our world needs Ubuntu. I think the best way to honor Mandela is to look for how to incorporate ubuntu into our teaching and learning, as well as our daily lives.
A close friend of mine growing up in the Middle East was South African. I remember hearing her incredible stories about Nelson Mandela and wishing that Israel/Palestine had a similar individual. This morning, watching Mandela’s 1998 speech at Harvard was a moving reminder of what a truly amazing person he was. His selfless work to give a voice to those who did not have one is inspiring and leaders everywhere can learn from him.
The noble leader changed South Africa and the world in a way more than most people could imagine possible by one man. It brings me great happiness that his contributions to society are being recognized and celebrated through memorial services across the globe, even in the United Arab Emirates (http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/general/uae-to-hold-nelson-mandela-memorial-service-in-abu-dhabi-1.1264482).
Madiba has left for a well deserved rest. I am part of a generation born while he was still in prison, and just old enough to start understanding the power of the events that took place in the nineties.
His life's work is immense and many lessons can be learned. Perhaps one of the most important pieces of his legacy now, at a time when we are struggling to find inspirational leaders, is the power that courageous leaders have when they make difficult choices. Mandela, Sisulu and others chose to unite with those they had fought to seek peace and unity.
Their message provides hope for all those living in places currently facing conflict.
On the attempt to work for social justice, this words have been of great inspiration: "It always seems impossible until its done." Live long Mandela, in our hands and minds.
Nelson Mandela was one of the greatest leaders of our time. In the past few days, I have asked myself, will we have another great leader as he in our life time? It is hard to imagine, and at the same time, the legacy of Mandela is that we must. He sacrificed his life for the people of his country, and then came back to lead them with humility, forgiveness, grace, peace, and unity.
Alex Massie wrote about Mandela:
"He made us feel better about ourselves not because we could emulate his example – we could not for we would surely be found wanting – but because he gave us an idea of what humanity could aspire to be."
I believe that for all of us working in education, that is the legacy of Mandela, a hope, a rising sun, that we have it in us to forgive, to learn, to inspire, and to mend what is broken. As we educate children and youth around the world, we must pass on this legacy that we can be good and we can overcome just as Mandela did for himself and for his people.
Mandela (and South Africa people) had thought us many lessons about courage, justice, intelligence and strengths to fight for what is right. His believes, fights and dreams should not be forgotten. We should not forget both that his endeavor is not ended yet… and that some social fighters are today in prison, in ¨terrorist¨ lists or still unknown of social media.
Francisco Benavdes
Gone is the last remaining great statesman and humanist of our time. Mandela transformed the history of a nation and touched the lives of people worldwide. His unequalled resilience and humbleness must remain as an example for us and for our children. We should do our best to help maintain his legacy, especially in our own private spheres. In this sense, I totally agree with what Wilson mentions in his post: we cannot all be a Mandela, but we can try to live by the humanist principles that guided his actions and for which he sacrificed his freedom for nearly 30 years. Fernando, thanks for sharing these resources about Mandela’s visit to Harvard... wish I could have been a student back then!
Mandela's legacy is truly impossible to measure, aside from his democratization and uniting races, his focus on education is truly inspiring. He said "education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." I agree with him and work daily to make this change possible....
Dear Fernando, thank you for this opportunity to reflect on Mandela's life and his legacy of what a man or woman can actually do to change the most oppressive patterns of society.
Few months ago when the media started to tell about Mandela's sickness, a friend of mine shared a piece of Clinton's foreword of Mandela's autobiography: Long walk to freedom which says:
… In another conversation I said, "Tell me the truth. When you were living prison after twenty-seven years and walking down that road to freedom, didn't you hate them all over again?" And he said, "Absolutely I did, because they imprisoned me for so long. I was abused. I didn't get to see my children grow up. I lost my marriage and the best years of my life. I was angry. And I was afraid, because I had not been free in so long. But as I got closer to the car that would take me away, I realized that when I went through that gate, if I still hated them, they will still have me. I wanted to be free. And so I let it go.
In letting it go, Mandela kept his mind and his heart. He would need both to lead his country…
***
Mandela's life is a powerful invitation to keep both mind and heart connected to a cause, use the power of "we" and change the world.
Thanks Fernando for putting this together
I believe that Nelson Mandela’s legacy will inspire many generations in South Africa and across the world in the years to come. He was a leader who demonstrated to us that the change is possible even in the most troubled contexts. Mandela showed how one should never lose sight of the most idealistic aspirations that relate to the well-being of others, even when the probability of successful realisation of those aspirations is minuscule. He believed in the power of education and he believed in the power of love. ‘If people can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite’ – this is one of his ideas that I treasure and try to always carry with me.
It's strange. For much of my life, Nelson Mandela was larger than life -- a person I had only seen and heard about in history books and TV/movies. He almost felt to me like the way I perceive George Washington, St. Francis, or Babe Ruth. Truly, legendary and iconic.
And then he died. To me, for the first time in 30 years, this made Nelson Mandela human to me. In so many ways, his accomplishments and impact were ever the stuff of mere mortals -- but then he died and reminded us all just the kind of impact ONE person can have.
It is in his death that I become more reminded of how one man, thousands of miles away, spending an enormous amount of time hidden away in the shadows, can emerge and transform humanity in the most surreal ways.
His message, vision, legacy, and work --all punctuate the integral nature of global education and how citizenship can be modeled and shared through one man's example, halfway across the world. Thank you Fernando for providing this space for thoughtful discussion and reflection.
And Mr. Mandela --you will be forever missed.
--Matt Weber, Ed.M. '11
While I've followed the news of Nelson Mandela's passing and the legacy he leaves behind, his following quote resonates with me greatly:
"Running taught me valuable lessons. In cross-country competition, training counted more than intrinsic ability, and I could compensate for a lack of natural aptitude with diligence and discipline. I applied this in everything I did."
As a competitive runner, I wholeheartedly agree: what we currently lack, be it in running or equal opportunities to rigorous and meaningful education around the globe, isn't destiny. We have the individual and collective power to change anything around us - to do so successfully we need to "train" by persistently pushing our perceived limits.
I'll continue to think back to Mandela's words when I face challenges, be it in endurance training or the driving force behind who I am: a change agent dedicated to creating environments for and providing students with an excellent education and life-changing options.
I thank Mandela for his words: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." As I start my day I reflect on the power of education and am inspired to use these words and his example as a guide
I thank Mandela for his words: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." As I start my day I reflect on the power of education and am inspired to use these words and his example as my guide.
Dear Professor Reimers,
Thank you for bringing together thoughts from people across the world, on Mandela - one of the greatest humanitarian forces in our lifetimes. Just the range of nationalities from which this blog has attracted responses is a simple representation of his legacy.
I didn't know much about Mandela beyond the basic details but as I read all the articles over the last couple of weeks, one thing that struck me was how someone from an armed resistance background, after a long tenure in prison, could come out pursuing peace and reconciliation, and becoming a messenger for these values. Apart from everything Mandela achieved for South Africa and for the world at large, this just also indicated a deep personal and spiritual journey, which is truly inspiring.
Ramya Venkataraman
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