Rolihlahla Mandela was born in 1918 in Africa and adopted by his father's tribe after his father's death. He was given the Christian name "Nelson" by his teacher and studied to become a lawyer. Mandela fought against racial discrimination and joined the African National Congress in 1948. He co-founded the military wing of the ANC and was imprisoned for many years for his activism against apartheid. After his release, Mandela negotiated an end to apartheid and became South Africa's first black president in 1994. He spent his life fighting for equality and democracy in South Africa before passing away in 2013.

1. Hero Project
by:
Navid Movaffagh
Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Africa July 18, 1918 into the Madiba clan. His father died when
he was just a young boy so he was adopted. He would listen to the elders stories and wanted to
make a change In the world. He went to school and his teacher gave him the name Nelson,
because all school children had to have Christian names. Mandela went to the college of Fort Hare
to get a bachelors of arts degree, but he could not complete it Because he was expelled for being
in a student protest. He went to the University of South Africa to finish his degree and then
returned to Fort Hare for graduation in 1943 (NelsonMandela.org). He then found out that his step
father had arranged a wedding for him, so he went into hiding in Johannesburg. He first was a
night watchman then a law clerk while studying law. He became involved in racial discrimination,
And made friendships with other civil rights activists. In 1948 nelson joined the African national
congress (ANC). The very same year nelson met and married his wife Evelyn Ntoko Mase and
had 4 children before their divorce in 1957. In 1956 Mandela and 155 other activists were arrested
for treason. Meanwhile there was tension in the ANC and eventually in 1959 a mob of the ANC
broke off to make the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC). The next year police open fired at a group of
black protesters killing 69 people. A wave of anger boiled around the country, and the goverment
banned both the ANC and the PAC. Mandela decided to take a different approach. Giving up was
not in nelson Mandela's vocabulary. In 1969 Mandela co founded the Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear
of the Nation) also known as MK, a new branch of the ANC. Mandela flew to Africa for a meeting
but when he came back he was arrested. After years and years of imprisonment
He published the book "long walk to freedom". After that the ANC negotiated with the government
for a multiracial country. All of South Africa voted for the ANC to lead the country. Mandela was
sworn in to be the first black president of South Africa. Unfortunately, after many terms of president
our brave hero died December 5, 2013 due to a lung infection. The US declared July 18 "Nelson
Mandela international day" for his bravery, strength and courage. (history.com)
Resources: http://www.history.com/topics/nelson-mandela and http://www.nelsonmandela.org