This document provides biographical information about Mohandas Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. It describes how Gandhi experienced racism in South Africa, which led him to fight for rights through nonviolent resistance. His efforts helped India gain independence. The document also outlines Mandela's opposition to apartheid in South Africa through the African National Congress, which resulted in his 27-year imprisonment before he became South Africa's first black president in 1994 after the end of apartheid.

1. Gandhi and Mandela
By Misty Sims

2. Gandhi
 Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on
October 2,1869 in Gujarat India
 He traveled to England to study Law when he was
Eighteen years old, he was shy and did not
succeed as an orator before the courts
 In 1893 he took a position as lawyer for an Indian
company in South Africa
 After only a week in South Africa Gandhi
experienced racism for the first time while
traveling on a train;he was thrown off the train for
being in first class
 Gandhi’s transformation from a shy speaker in the
courts to the man and moral leader he was to
become emerged as he deliberated over staying
and fighting for his rights or returning home to
India
 Gandhi stayed in South Africa for 21 years, his way
of living and thought became one as he
transformed himself through thought, theory and
test thus experimenting with Truth “each time
Gandhi came up with a new idea, he asked if it was
worth living up to” (Parekh p.6)
 Gandhi’s beliefs in non-violence resistance to
oppression was greatly influenced by his studies in
Christian doctrine, his close missionary friend C.F.
Andrews and his correspondence with Leo Tolstoy,
“Truth Force” Gandhi’s political philosophy, was a
non-violent approach to political tyranny

3. Gandhi
 Gandhi returned to India in 1914, because of Gandhi’s successful work in some reforms in
South Africa, his political acclaim had grown
 Gandhi became a political leader within fours years of his return from South Africa
 Gandhi became the leader of the Indian National Congress (INC)
 Gandhi fought for the Independence of India from British rule with non cooperative
movements like the Salt March
 Gandhi’s demeanor, of morality and peaceful strength led to India’s independence
 India had internal struggles with it’s Muslim religious groups and Hindu population
 India finally became independent in 1947 after WWII
 A million people died in the violence that ensued during the partition, millions of Hindu’s and
Muslims migrated from one side to the other to be with their religious groups
 This violence hurt Gandhi deeply and he refused to attend the Independence celebrations
 Before his death, Gandhi walked throughout India in an attempt to stop the violence he
witnessed in India between these religious groups
 Gandhi was assassinated in 1948 by a Hindu extremist
 Gandhi is highly esteemed as one of the greatest moral and political leaders in history

4. Nelson Mandela
 Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 in the village of Mvezo in
Transkei, into the royal family of Thembu.
 Mandela’s birth name Rolihlahla meant ‘troublemaker,’ also Mandela was given the
name ‘Nelson’ (which represented British naval heroes) by his grade school
teacher, thus in her book Elleke Boehmer attributes “resistance, social stature and
heroism” to Mandela’s name and connected this to how “his life has played out”
(Boehmer p.1)
 Nelson Mandela was the first one in his family to attend school
 Mandela attended Wesleyan mission schools
 Mandela’s life story parallels that of “of a nation’s coming into being” (Boehmer,
p.5)
 Mandela himself held a “sense of destiny” (Boehmer, p.23) since his childhood

5. Nelson Mandela
 Mandela benefited greatly from his strict regimented routine of school, becoming disciplined in mind and
man, these attributes would be beneficial to him later when he was incarcerated and destined to lead in
South Africa’s independence
 The British colonization of South Africa led to the horror of Apartheid, which is legal racial segregation
 Mandela became active in the ANC, African National Congress and led the “Defiance Campaign” in the 1950’s
in response to apartheid
 Mandela and many members of ANC were accused of treason during the “Treason Trial of 1956–1961” but
were acquitted
 Mandela grew into an antiapartheid activist and contemplated guerilla action, ANC went underground after it
was banned because of the Sharpeville Massacre
 Mandela became a leader in the ANC underground movement
 Mandela in 1962, was arrested for leaving the country illegally and inciting riots and sentenced to 5 years
imprisonment. This was when Mandela first went to Robben Island
 ANC members were arrested in 1963, while Mandela was already serving time in prison. Mandela and several
other members were brought up on charges of sabotage. Mandela in his 1964 court appearance discussed
the necessity for the ANC to use violent measures against apartheid since the Sharpeville Massacre
 Mandela spent 27 years in prison as a political prisoner, developing his skills of communication and
negotiation
 Nelson Mandela became the first President of South Africa elected under non racial elections in 1994. Prior
elected heads of South Africa where called State President

6. Sources
 Parekh, Bhikhu- GANDHI A Very Short
Introduction: (New York, Oxford University
Press 1977)
 Boehmer, Elleke - NELSON MANDELA A Very
Short Introduction:(New York, Oxford
University Press, 2008)
 www.quotationspage.com
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohandas_Karamchand_G
andhi
 http://www.google.com/images?q=images+gandhi&oe
=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-
a&um=1&ie=UTF-
8&source=univ&ei=1B5nTLCHKcOclgeGydyfBQ&sa=X&
oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CCs
QsAQwAA&biw=1079&bih=836
 http://www.google.com/images?q=Images+Nelson+Ma
ndela&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-
US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-
8&source=univ&ei=MB9nTK6LJsOclgf3yOifBQ&sa=X&oi
=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CEIQ
sAQwAw&biw=1079&bih=836
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_South_Africa
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soweto_uprising
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharpeville_Massacre