95 Years of Nelson Mandela: 1918-2013

Here I would like to recognize his life and legacy. Here is a collection of facts and quotes. One for every year that this world leader was alive.  

The quotes are italicized and underlined.

A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.

The Birth given name of Nelson Mandela is Rolihlahla Mandela

Any man or institution that tries to rob me of my dignity will lose.

His birth given name literally means pulling the branch from the tree or troublemaker 

If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

He was given the name Nelson by a school teacher

For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.

He was sometimes called Madiba, his traditional clan name.

I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.

Mandela was born in Mvezo, a village on the eastern cape of South Africa 

It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership.

Mandela was born July 18, 1918 

To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.

July 18 is "Mandela Day" an international recognized day in his honor 

Sometimes, I feel like one who is on the sidelines, who has missed life itself.

Mandela was the son of a village chief 

If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.

His father, who served as a tribal chief, died when he was 9 

In countries where innocent people are dying, the leaders are following their blood rather than their brains.

In 1941, at 23, he ran away from an arranged marriage 

There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.

Nelson Mandela’s first job was as a security guard at a mine. 

Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.

Mandela was married three times 

I stand here before you not as a prophet, but as a humble servant of you, the people.

Mandela has 6 children and 20 grandchildren 

It always seems impossible until its done.

He was the first member of his family to attend school 

There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.

He had a cameo in the Spike Lee film "Malcolm X" 

There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.

Mandela declined to say the closing words "by any means necessary," so Spike Lee cut back to footage of Malcolm X saying it. 

After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.

Besides politics, another passion of Mandela's was boxing, the science of it to be exact 

Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another.

Mandela has a prehistoric woodpecker named after him: Australopicus nelsonmandelai 

We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.

Mandela's favorite dish was tripe

I dream of the realization of the unity of Africa, whereby its leaders combine in their efforts to solve the problems of this continent. I dream of our vast deserts, of our forests, of all our great wildernesses.

He was on the U.S. terror watch list until 2008 

In my country we go to prison first and then become President

Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison as a protest against apartheid 

A good leader can engage in a debate frankly and thoroughly, knowing that at the end he and the other side must be closer, and thus emerge stronger. You don't have that idea when you are arrogant, superficial, and uninformed.

Mandela was arrested dressed in a chauffeur uniform 

If the United States of America or Britain is having elections, they don't ask for observers from Africa or from Asia. But when we have elections, they want observers.

While imprisoned, he was only permitted one visitor a year 

I detest racialism, because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man.

During his time in prison, Mandela was restricted to a 2m x 2.5 cell with nothing but a bedroll on the floor and a bucket for sanitation in it. 

I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.

Mandela rejected offers of freedom while in jail

I made a mistake by being ejected from the presidency. Next time, I will choose a Cabinet which will allow me to be life President.

Mandela was inspired by the poem Invictus, during his 27 years in prison. 

Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all.

On his 72nd birthday cake, it was the first birthday he celebrated as a free man since the 1960s. 

There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.

Mandela votes for the first time in his life on March 26, 1994. 

Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will.

On April 27, 1994, South Africa held its first democratic elections. 

If there are dreams about a beautiful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could be named Goodness and Forgiveness.

He was elected the first black president of South Africa in 1994 

I dream of an Africa which is in peace with itself.

Mandela signed into law a new constitution for the nation 

Leaders in all spheres who are living with HIV should be encouraged, not coerced, to lead by example and disclose their HIV status.

He promoted reconciliation between Whites and Black by the use of the once hated ruby team 

Does anybody really think that they didn't get what they had because they didn't have the talent or the strength or the endurance or the commitment?

Mandela and Oliver Tambo set-up the first black-run law firm in South Africa in 1952.

If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world, it is the United States of America.

Nelson Mandela has honorary degrees from more than 50 international universities. 

Let freedom reign. The sun never set on so glorious a human achievement.

In 1939, Mandela enrolled at the University College of Fort Hare, the only residential center of higher learning for blacks in South Africa at the time. 

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1942. 

I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

He was the leader of the armed wing of the African National Congress. 

We can't afford to be killing one another.

Mandela became president of the African National Congress Youth League in 1951. 

No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.

During his years of hiding, to evade arrest, Mandela adopted different forms of disguises that earned him the title of the 'Black Pimpernel' 

I am confident that nobody... will accuse me of selfishness if I ask to spend time, while I am still in good health, with my family, my friends and also with myself 

After his release in 1990, Mandela embarked on a world tour, meeting U.S. President George H.W. Bush at the White House in June. 

There is no such thing as part freedom.

Mandela won the Nobel prize in 1993. 

It is wise to persuade people to do things and make them think it was their own idea.

In 1994, Mandela published an autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom

Our human compassion binds us the one to the other - not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future.

In 1999, Mandela leaves office after one term

I cannot conceive of Israel withdrawing if Arab states do not recognize Israel, within secure borders.

Mandela set-up the Nelson Mandela foundation in 1999 

Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into contracts. Your freedom and mine cannot be separated.

Mandela was diagnosed and treated for prostate cancer in 2001

Intervention only works when the people concerned seem to be keen for peace.

At the age of 85, he announced his formal retirement from public life 

The titanic effort that has brought liberation to South Africa, and ensured the total liberation of Africa, constitutes an act of redemption for the black people of the world.

Nelson Mandela made his last public appearance at the final match of the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. 

No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite