Nelson Mandela Day
Today is Nelson Mandela Day. He will always remain in my mind a peaceful person who found his way after many years in prison. The irony was that the prison became his liberation. When a person finds peace they become more powerful, as Gandhi said nonviolence is a force more powerful. Indeed that is true. Yet the way of peace is not just flowery statements, it comes from determination, a strong desire for truth, a powerful feeling of love, and you can’t fake that.
Gandhi inspired Mandela. I sat in a library here in Melbourne that houses Gandhi’s books, there are rows and rows. He was a prolific writer. What I realised just reading through some of his thoughts, he worked tirelessly on rooting out weaknesses that made him as a man, a baser person. He sought to remain in high virtue and he powerfully taught this to other. What makes Mandela great is his virtues which are the true power of humanity. It is the virtues not the man that house the real power. Can you feel that?
Here is a website with some activities for Nelson Mandela Day http://www.mandeladay.com/actions/search
Nelson Mandela International Day, also known as Mandela Day, is held on July 18 each year. The day remembers Mandela’s achievements in working towards conflict resolution, democracy, human rights, peace, and reconciliation.
Nelson Mandela (postage stamp of Mandela pictured above) is respected for his commitment to values such as freedom, equality, and respect.
I just read the overview of Mandela day they list out values, but interestingly didn’t say love or truth. I guess inherent within all those values is this foundation. Reconciliation and diversity are not really values perhaps better articulated as reconciliation as coming together as one, so oneness would be the value. In relation to diversity it is stating we are different, the value is inclusivity which means including everyone no matter how different they appear. Both ultimately return to oneness. All virtues lead to unity, that is how you know they are virtues. It is different from culturally defined values or organisational values. I am speaking of universal ones, for always the most powerful values will mirror nature, unity and oneness. For we are all one, and it was this feeling that made Nelson great. He spoke to something we all share, a deep knowing that we are intimately connected with each other, as one family in a cosmic system that is interdependent and connected.
So happy Nelson Mandela day to you.
What do people do?
Nelson Mandela Day not only celebrates Nelson Mandela’s life, but it is also a global call to action for people to recognize their ability to have a positive effect on others around them. The day hopes to inspire people to embrace the values that Mandela shared. These values include democracy, freedom, equality, diversity, reconciliation, and respect.
Many people and organizations around the world take part in many activities to promote Nelson Mandela Day. These activities include volunteering, sport, art, education, music and culture. Various events are also held on or around July 18 to honor Nelson Mandela’s works and to promote the different projects that were inspired by Mandela’s achievements.
Mandela Day also celebrates a campaign known as “46664”, in reference to Nelson Mandela’s Robben Island prison number. The campaign was originally launched to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS. However, its focus expanded to broader humanitarian work. The efforts from Mandela Day support the campaign’s ongoing work and other Nelson Mandela charitable organizations.
Public life
Nelson Mandela Day is a global observance but it is not a public holiday.
Background
Nelson Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa, on July 18, 1918. He is one of the most well-known anti-apartheid activists in South Africa. He was jailed in 1964 for leading the liberation movement against apartheid and for his stance on the human right to live in freedom.
Mandela’s prisoner number was 466 and the year was 1964 when he was imprisoned on Robben Island, off Cape Town in South Africa. The Robben Island prisoners were never referred to by their names, but rather by their numbers and year of imprisonment – hence 46664 was Nelson Mandela’s number. His release from prison in 1990 fed political debates in the country and contributed to South Africa’s transition towards a multi-racial democracy.
After his release, Nelson Mandela continued addressing racial issues in his country and supported reconciliation initiatives. His efforts resulted in him becoming elected as South Africa’s president in 1994. He remained in office as president until 1999. He also won the Nobel Peace Prize, together with another former South African president Frederik Willem de Klerk, in 1993. In 2007 Mandela formed the Elders, an independent group of global leaders who offer their influence and experience to support peace building, help address major human suffering causes and promote shared interests of humanity.
The first Mandela Day was launched in New York on July 18, 2009, but the UN’s resolution to declare the day occurred later that year. On November 10, 2009, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring July 18 as “Nelson Mandela International Day”. The day marks Nelson Mandela’s contribution to peace through his active involvement in resolving conflicts, promoting human rights, international democracy and reconciliation, and in addressing racial issues.
Symbols
Various statues and civic tributes have been made to honor Nelson Mandela. For example, a statue in Mandela’s image stands at Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg, South Africa. A bridge, known as the Nelson Mandela Bridge, is also found in Johannesburg. Postage stamps have also been dedicated to Mandela, as well as various musical tributes, in previous times.
Note: timeanddate.com would like to thank sources such as mandeladay.com and 46664.com for information about Nelson Mandela Day.