Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela | Goodreads

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Long Walk to Freedom
(Long Walk to Freedom #1-2)
by
Nelson Mandela
4.33 · Rating details · 56,300 ratings · 3,155 reviews
Nelson Mandela is one of the great moral and political leaders of our time: an international hero whose lifelong dedication to the fight against racial oppression in South Africa won him the Nobel Peace Prize and the presidency of his country.

Since his triumphant release in 1990 from more than a quarter-century of imprisonment, Mandela has been at the center of the most c ...more

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Paperback, 656 pages
Published October 1st 1995 by Back Bay Books (first published January 1st 1994)
Original Title
Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela
ISBN
0316548189 (ISBN13: 9780316548182)
Edition Language
English
Series
Long Walk to Freedom #1-2
Characters
Nelson Mandela
Literary Awards
Alan Paton Award (1995)

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Jul 29, 2013Rowena rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: african-lit, autobiography, favorites
“As I finally walked through those gates to enter a car on the other side, I felt- even at the age of seventy-one- that my life was beginning anew. My ten thousand days of imprisonment were over.” - Nelson Mandela, A Long Walk to Freedom

2013, my year of reading biographies, started off with Dr. King’s and ended with reading Nelson Mandela’s. A perfect end to the year.

Apartheid is something that hit very close to home to me, being a member of the same Bantu people that the racist Afrikaner government believed were on the same level as animals. Mandela has always been a hero in my family and I grew up hearing about his life and his struggles to gain freedom for black South Africans. I knew about Apartheid before I knew about the American civil rights movement.

This autobiography is very comprehensive in scope, covering Mandela’s childhood, his adulthood, his transformation into a freedom fighter, and his time spent in jail, and finally his inauguration as South Africa’s first black president.The history of his African National Congress party was intriguing,and even more gripping were the stories of Mandela's days as the "Black Pimpernel" travelling all around Africa and Europe.

This was not an easy read. Mandela made so many sacrifices, as did his wife and children. It really hurt reading about how he, his wife and children were treated, and how it took so long for the world to wake up and send proper help.

“I was made, by the law, a criminal, not because of what I had done, but because of what I stood for, because of what I thought, because of my conscience.”

A couple of things really stood out to me. The first was how colonized our thinking is. Black Africans have been told they are inferior and even now they often display that inferiority complex. The Afrikaners were fed the same lies and believed that blacks were inferior before witnessing for themselves that that wasn't true (Boer party propaganda). The second thing that stood out was how this book restored my faith in mankind at times. It was fascinating to read about the humanity that arose in the unlikeliest people.

Mandela was humble and acknowledged all those involved in the freedom struggle. About his inauguration, he said, “I felt that day, as I have on so many other days, that I was simply the sum of all those African patriots who have gone before me. That long and noble line ended and now began again with me. I was pained that I was not able to thank them and that they were not able to see what their sacrifices had wrought.”

After reading this book, my respect for Mandela grew even more. I loved his spirit; he refused to be broken, he refused to become bitter and he somehow kept his wit and his sense of humour. He was honest about what he learned, about his own prejudices and mistakes.

The first time I visited South Africa was in 1995, a year after the democratic elections that officially ended Apartheid. The thought crossed my mind that a few years prior my family and I would not have been able to make that trip in such comfort and safety. Thank you, Madiba for making this happen.

To quote my GR friend Leola, “I feel like the world could never be prepared enough to say goodbye to Nelson Mandela.” (less)
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Dec 20, 2012Warwick rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: biography, autobiography, politics, history, south-africa
At over 700 pages, Nelson Mandela's autobiography might look like a serious commitment. Actually though, it doesn't feel like a heavy book at all. Like the thinking which informs it, the writing is clear, measured and straightforward, albeit scattered with bits of Harvard English that are presumably down to Mandela's (uncredited) American ghostwriter, Richard Stengel.

I sped through it in under a week, thanks mainly to a couple of long train journeys. I'm left with a much more nuanced view of Mandela and what he stood for, and a much clearer idea of the man behind the symbol.

What I found particularly valuable were the insights into how deeply apartheid ingrained racism not just on to the white minority, but on to the attitudes and assumptions throughout the whole of South African society. Mandela at one point mentions being struck by the sight of a young beggar-girl by the side of the road in a township, and reacting completely differently because she was white:


While I did not normally give to African beggars, I felt the urge to give this woman money. In that moment I realized the tricks that apartheid plays on one, for the everyday travails that afflict Africans are accepted as a matter of course, while my heart immediately went out to this bedraggled white woman. In South Africa, to be poor and black was normal, to be poor and white was a tragedy.

A few years and several hundred pages later, he has the corollary experience while taking a clandestine flight in Ethiopia.


As I was boarding the plane I saw that the pilot was black. I had never seen a black pilot before, and the instant I did I had to quell my panic. How could a black man fly a plane? But a moment later I caught myself: I had fallen into the apartheid mind-set, thinking Africans were inferior and that flying was a white man's job.

If the leaders of the resistance movement can react like this – How could a black man fly a plane? – the reactions of less committed or thoughtful South Africans can readily be imagined, and you begin to get a sense of the sheer scale of the problem which faced the ANC and other activists. A problem which has not entirely gone away.

These are the well-chosen memories of someone interested in their own thoughts and responses, and who had the time – so much of it – to examine his life and sift out the experiences that counted. Everywhere in the book, there is this sense of a man who has thought long and hard about the choices he made, and can explain them simply and directly.

Not all of them are necessarily easy to sympathise with, or at least they perhaps shouldn't be. Let's be clear: Mandela is not Ghandi. We should remember (and he is admirably open about it) that Amnesty International always declined to work on Mandela's behalf because he refused to renounce violence as a valid tool in the fight against apartheid. He was the first head of the ANC's militant wing, the MK, and involved in paramilitary training; he drew up plans for action that ran from sabotage to guerrilla warfare. At one point, he describes his 1950s self as ‘a young man who attempted to make up for his ignorance with militancy’ – but actually, that militancy never goes away, it just becomes more grounded in political and moral justifications. Mandela's ethical sensibility is always there; but ethics are not paramount.


For me, non-violence was not a moral principle but a strategy; there is no moral goodness in using an ineffective weapon.

Effective weapons were considered to include explosives, as demonstrated for example in the Church Street bombing of 1983 which killed 19 people and wounded over 200, including many civilians. Mandela mentions it in passing, and has the following to say.


The killing of civilians was a tragic accident, and I felt a profound horror at the death toll. But disturbed as I was by these casualties, I knew that such accidents were the inevitable consequence of the decision to embark on a military struggle. Human fallibility is always a part of war, and the price of it is always high. It was precisely because we knew that such incidents would occur that our decision to take up arms had been so grave and reluctant. But as Oliver said at the time of the bombing, the armed struggle was imposed upon us by the violence of the apartheid regime.

We are on dangerous ground here. Can we put a number on how many civilian deaths are considered a reasonable price to pay for ending apartheid? At the same time, though, who on earth am I to question his decisions and moral code – I who have never experienced a fraction of the abuse and discrimination which was his daily life, and who am never likely to have to make the impossible choices that were so common under apartheid?

All I can say is Mandela doesn't shy away from it. I may not always be comfortable about it, but I felt a deep respect for his willingness to stand behind his actions and explain them as best he can.

Ultimately, Mandela was saved from being a truly ambiguous figure by the simple fact that he was arrested and imprisoned before he could be directly involved in any violence himself; for him, it's all theoretical, and, locked away behind bars, he could be viewed more simply as an innocent martyr to a just cause. And indeed, it's in his response to the years of incarceration that the greatness of Mandela's character comes through. Twenty-seven years in jail would be enough to make any man bitter; but he is the opposite of bitter. Time and again he shows himself willing to listen to and work with those who might easily be called his enemies – from dissenting black activists, through ambivalent prison warders, up to the president of South Africa.

It's his astonishing ability to do without bitterness – essentially, his capacity for forgiveness – which really makes Mandela an inspiration. Perhaps it's my naïveté, but I can't help concluding that, when international pressure got too much for South Africa's government, it was Mandela's openness in negotiations which forged the breakthrough and not the MK's sporadic attempts to meet violence with violence. That's certainly what I'll take away from this excellent and fascinating memoir: that, and a delight in his unshakable belief that no matter how degrading the conditions, or how long the imprisonment, no one had the power to damage who he was on the inside:


Prison and the authorities conspire to rob each man of his dignity. In and of itself, that assured that I would survive, for any man or institution that tries to rob me of my dignity will lose because I will not part with it at any price or under any pressure.(less)
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Mar 07, 2017Matt rated it it was amazing
Shelves: audiobook
As I continue the forty days of biography reading, I thought I ought to tackle some of the 'big players' in the world of politics. At a time when the world is still ill-balanced, I wanted to delve into the world of Nelson Mandela, one who sought to recalibrate a significant unbalance on the African continent over a number of decades. Having a great interest in South Africa, the backwardness of apartheid's acceptance by any governing body, and how the world handled the bloodshed under the racist regime there, I felt this would be a wonderful starting point. I have read much historical fiction about the country and the struggles, but it is high time we look to facts and figures. There will be those who oppose me reading this autobiography for propaganda reasons (and they have already reared their heads) and I welcome their sentiments, though the sub-set who are supremacists and bully views for the sake of racism belong in the weed-choked fields of knowledge from whence they came. And yes, they have come out to write to me as well!

Born in 1918 with the birth name 'Rolihlahla', Xhosa for "pulling the branch of a tree', Mandela lived his early years in a small village far from the bustling cities of Cape Town or Johannesburg. Living in the traditional way of Africans, the village shared resources and means of survival, which might have fostered his views that found him in hot water decades later. Seeing much potential in their son, Mandela's parents allowed the Church to play a strong role in his upbringing and education, which led him to find a passion for the law. Mandela explains early on in this autobiography that his desire to advocate for others became a foundation of the way he lived his life. Eventually pulled into the larger city, Mandela worked in a law firm in Johannesburg, though failed to pass some of the essential academic examinations to earn an LLB. However, Mandela found a strong desire to help his fellow African with issues that arose and worked within the limits before him to ensure that all South Africans shared the same opportunities. South Africa was in the midst of a transformation, still part of the British Commonwealth but run primarily by the Afrikaner white minority, who ruled in an off-balance manner that sought to use the minority sentiments to shape the laws for all. With the exclusion of the black African (please allow me at this time to offer apologies for anyone who takes offence to the word 'black', for I am simply using the term Mandela presented throughout, which differentiates between the white minority and the unrepresented majority) population, Mandela began to meet with other like-minded men and sought to join the political movement of the African National Congress (ANC), whose long-standing support of black equality fit nicely with the views he espoused. Mandela used this passion to fuel his mantra as he sought to push back against the views of the South African Government. Mandela did find time to marry, choosing Evelyn Nkoto Mase, who bore him his first set of children. Mandela explores the life of an anti-colonist and the role the ANC played in his early life. By this time, the South African government brought in apartheid, an approach to racial divide the country and benefit the whites. Mandela would not stand for this and spoke out whenever he could to counter the racist governmental policies. The strains between Mandela and Evelyn led to a disintegration of that marriage and Mandela was forced to come to terms with it while he wrestled for black equality. Not long single, Mandela met and married Winnie Madikizela, sure they would be together after their first date. Things ramped up and Mandela was soon persona non grata in the country, hiding from the authorities in order to protect himself. Mandela tells of his secret trips to other parts of Africa to meet with other black leaders who were also trying to toss the shackles of oppression from their peoples. And yet, the world stood by and watched as the politics of South Africa became more troublesome. The ANC ramped up its views and Mandela became a strong figurehead, eventually brought to trial for High Treason after espousing views of wanting to overthrow the government. Mandela makes clear that there was no way to follow a peaceful solution against the Government, though he may have wanted to parallel Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. However, targeted violence would not include the regular citizen and assassination was never promoted or condoned. Sentenced to life in prison after the judge chose not to impose the death penalty, Mandela began his twenty-seven years behind bars on Robben Island, an isolated prison facility.

A resident of the Robben Island prison Mandela speaks frankly about his incarceration and the treatment he received. While the meals were poor and the sanitary conditions less than ideal, I expected severe beatings and horrendous treatment at the hands of guards and wardens to pepper the narrative. However, Mandela was seen as an advocate for his fellow prisoners and earned the respect of the white prison hierarchy, to the point that he was given special treatment when presenting concerns to the prison authorities. His imprisonment became a political soapbox and many people from all corners of the world came to see him and listen to his views, though nothing changed. While the outside world continued to speak out against apartheid and issued sanctions, politics within the country sought to strengthen the racially divisive movement under a number of leaders, culminating in P.W. Botha, perhaps its most ruthless Afrikaner leader. However, as Mandela presents in the latter portion of the narrative, Botha readily met with Mandela and heard his complaints. Mandela continued to espouse equality and fought against apartheid, though Botha gave only lip service to these concerns. As the world began to shift toward the end of the 1980s, South Africa's apartheid views seemed to dissipate when Botha stepped down and F.W. de Klerk became prime minister. Under de Klerk, Mandela's sentence came to an end and he was able to leave Robben Island, completing the long and sordid walk to freedom.

Mandela is able to use the last dozen or so chapters to speak of this freedom and the changes that came to pass, though there was surely many hurdles to overcome and much reconciliation that needed to take place. Mandela advocated for free and open elections, even while de Klerk sought an outright veto over any legislation for the Afrikaners. Push came to shove and the racial divide led to more murders, increased resentment, and added pressure on Mandela and the ANC to prove that they could act within political means and not turn to guns. Mandela speaks frankly, though never stops pushing for talk over bullet to solve the issue. By the time the first open national election came to pass in 1994, Mandela was able to rise to the role of President of the South African Republic, the ultimate gift after decades of oppression.

Some who saw that I was reading this jumped immediately onto Mandela's being a communist (as though that were a poisoned moniker) and a terrorist. Both of these sentiments are true in their textbook form, though the flavour in which they were presented makes them seem horrid and worthy of vilification. To those people, who prefer to talk of peaceful whites and raping blacks (I kid you not), I can only offer pity as they allow ignorance to ferment inside their minds. It also shows that they have no interest in engaging in an intellectual conversation on Mandela or the apartheid era in South Africa. Mandela's upbringing was very much one of social equality for all and his interest in Marxist views fuelled a passion to see equality for every man, woman, and child within South Africa, irregardless of the colour of their skin or background. His terrorist leanings were borne out of a need to bring about needed change. I neither condemn or condone these actions, but I do see some rationale, as Mandela spoke of wanting to emulate Gandhi's protest in India. However, while the British were a sensible people with a democratic political system that permitted all to vote, South Africa would never allow blacks to have a political voice, thereby keeping them from ever bringing about change in a parliamentary means. Mandela spoke of two Americans coming to see him in prison, pushing the idea of Martin Luther King's triumphs in America without ever needing to promote violence. Again, Mandela spoke of how the US Constitution entrenched equal rights within the document and King was only trying to promote these sentiments in the racist south. So, while he was a terrorist in the textbook sense, one might wonder if it was for a good cause. Of course, that will not quell the views of those who are cemented into a hatred that could include burning crosses or half-truths, but then again, some people's ignorance comes from indoctrination and a refusal to expand their knowledge.

Mandela's crisp delivery is refreshing, especially as he speaks to frankly about these issues. I was drawn into the chapters and found myself begging for more information, even though I was already drowning in all the narrative had to offer. Mandela does not try to make himself look like a martyr or saint, but does not shy away from the evils he felt were developing around him. His love of self, family, and the larger South African state appears throughout. While this was an autobiography, it is balanced and can be called a realistic account, though I would be remiss if I took it as gospel. Mandela pulls no punches, while remaining above the fray and not getting himself stuck in the racial mud slinging that one might expect from someone who was oppressed for so long. He could have penned a powerful piece, highly critical of the government and scathing in its presentation, but by keeping things balanced and free from poisonous rhetoric, the reader is more likely to find pieces they support. The attentive reader will learn how Mandela devised early drafts of this piece and find themselves impressed with his ability to recollect so much. Far from succinct, but laid out perfectly to see the slow development of Mandela's struggles, the reader will surely appreciate the attention to detail and powerful arguments that pepper this piece from beginning to end.

Kudos seem to be too small an honour to bestow upon you, Mr. Mandela. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece and while others may criticise me for even considering it, I am happy I took the time to learn about these struggles within South Africa.

I would encourage anyone who knows of a good book that tells the opposite side of the argument to send me a recommendation. All I ask is that it is well-sourced and a grounded piece that does not spiral into hate speech. I am eager to see apartheid and the white struggle within South Africa, should it exist.

Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/ (less)
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Aug 27, 2012Donna Davis rated it it was amazing
Shelves: favorites, black-rights, memoirs-biographies-autobio, primary-sources, pol-sc,not-usa-canada-or-england, reviewed, blogged
If you are not a prolific reader, the size and weight of this volume may look daunting. After reading the first two or three chapters, you will be tempted to give up. DON'T!!! It's just about to get really good.

This autobiography chronicles Mandela's life, first as the son of a tribal chief, then as an educated Black man under Apartheid--a dangerous thing to be--and then the journey, both outward and inward, from attorney to the leader of a revolution. You will read about his time on Riecher's Island, the notorious prison, and the various experiences he had in the courtroom and in captivity. He tells of the cunning ways those who were jailed for political reasons created to communicate and to an extent, continue to lead from inside prison. And he breaks up the horror with an occasional vignette of a surprisingly kindly jailor or other authority figure who does small, decent things when no one is looking.

If you are interested in the history of South Africa and the defeat of Apartheid, this is a must-read. If you ever, as I did, had a "Free Nelson Mandela" poster in your living room...read this, and celebrate. (less)
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Dec 01, 2016Luís C. rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: on-my-own, biography, politics, favourites, south-africa, little-brown, 700-800,reading-the-world
A long way to freedom, courageously traveled by many men and women, to free themselves from the White oppressor, to regain human dignity, the pride of being Black. At first peaceful, they are forced to take up arms, to respond to the violence that faces them furiously. Neither the courts nor the prison can break this quest for equity, democracy and freedom.
Then it will be non-vengeance to take the path of negotiations, to annihilate hatred by words of peace.

A wonderful and moving testimony.
A timeless and universal hope message that upsets us.

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

I am not really free if I deprive someone else of his freedom. The oppressed and the oppressor are both dispossessed of their humanity. » (less)
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Jul 28, 2013Hadrian rated it really liked it
Shelves: subsaharan-africa, biography-memoir, nonfiction, politics-and-foreign-policy,social-justice, south-africa
“I had no epiphany, no singular revelation, no moment of truth, but a steady accumulation of a thousand slights, a thousand indignities and a thousand unremembered moments produced in me an anger, a rebelliousness, a desire to fight the system that imprisoned my people. There was no particular day on which I said, Henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise.”

Nelson Mandela turned 95 last week. Twenty years previously, he had already become a symbol of hope, of peace, and the fight for justice in the world. The myths which develop around politicians are largely exaggerated, but Mandela is one of the rare exceptions where the praise is largely justified.

I admit I knew very little about the man, or even his legend, so I went right to the source. This was a good decision. Mandela is honest about his motives and his life. He writes with detail and some pride in his work, but is also candid about his mistakes, his youthful misadventures, and his strained family life.

The book starts with Mandela's youth, upbringing, and education. His stories about this life are fascinating, and his transition to a university life is not without trouble. For example, he talks about his embarrassment at using cutlery and wearing boots.

The bulk of the middle section of the book is about his efforts for justice against the racist systems of South Africa. When the radical Nationalist Party took over, his party was forced underground, and thus he made the decision to begin sabotage and limited rebellion against the state. These sections are riveting, and Mandela has many stories about false names, and getaways from the police. Despite this decision to use violence, his human feelings were still evident. He felt pangs of guilt after killing birds as target practice.

After his sudden arrest and sensational trial, the next long stretch of the book covers his imprisonment on Robbins Island and Pollsmoor Prison. Here, he continues the struggle by working with the other political prisoners, educating the guards, and trying to keep himself sane in the years between visits from his wife. He does not touch his wife's hand for over twenty years.

The secret talks began in the mid-70s with the Botha government. The talks are polite, but they make little progress. With de Klerk, however, "here was a man we could do business with". Apartheid crumbles, and Mandela achieves personal freedom on his own terms, and thrusts himself back into political life. The book ends with his inauguration in 1994.

So what will be remembered as the man's legacy? Frankly, there is a lot. The first is that apartheid was dismantled peacefully, and the underground ANC was transformed into a political party with minimal strain. Despite the white minority's fears that there would be armed rebellion and race war, South Africa has not fallen into that cycle. Mandela would be the first to admit that South Africa's fight is not finished, that there are still problems of crime, income inequality, and the looming threats of disease, but he is able to create a unifying democratic government which is capable of handling them. Now the majority the people can choose.

The book is decently long for an autobiography, but it reads fairly quickly. Mandela's narrative voice quiet, reflective, and witty, but also bears the mark of an immense inner strength. He exhibits extraordinary patience and forgiveness, even of the Afrikaners and the prison guards.

South Africa continues its long walk to freedom. His is but the first stride forward, and a model not only for a nation, not only for the African continent, but for the world.

"Time and again, I have seen men and women risk and give their lives for an idea. I have seen men stand up to attacks and torture without breaking, showing a strength and resiliency that defies the imagination. I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. I felt fear myself more times than I can remember, but I hid it behind a mask of boldness. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." (less)
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Sep 28, 2007Missy rated it it was ok
First of all let me say that Nelson Mandela is an amazing man who has been through more trials than I could ever imagine, and he faced them with such class and strength. I am glad I know more about his history and his life as a "freedom fighter," and this book gave me greater appreciation for black South Africans. However, it was a long, long, long, long walk to freedom. I guess I like books that are written in story form, which shows some lack of intelligence on my part, unfortunately. It took me about 11 months to read this book, and I would have given up, except for the fact that it would make me crazy to start a book and not finish it (especially because I wanted to learn more about apartheid). (less)
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Jul 24, 2012Cheryl rated it it was amazing
Shelves: africa
Where does one start with this? The story of freedom fighter, head of state, and world leader, Nelson Mandela--a book that spans his childhood, years spent in prison, and subsequent election as president. I grew up constantly reminded that a man, this man, was seated somewhere in South Africa in a prison cell, fighting for freedom for an entire nation and group of people.

The former president started this manuscript while in prison (sometime around 1974) and concocted a plan to have the original manuscript snuck out of prison (which ended up being a smart plan since prison guards confiscated what they thought was the original manuscript). The book is long and quite detailed (at times wordy), with extra care paid to conversations and political names and roles, travels Mandela had with political heads of state, the making of the political group The ANC, the start of the movement to denounce apartheid, and a detailed family tree in the beginning.

It is a book you usually see written by a biographer (like this one written about Warren Buffet: The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of LifeInstead, the former president wrote this one himself, taking careful pains to even talk about his childhood school and upbringing (another thing you normally see omitted from autobiographies, and sometimes biographies). Excerpts from this book could be studied in history and literature classes.

It is a poignant read written in classic autobiography style, with a strong "voice," one that has serious life lessons and inspiration for anybody at any stage of life.

The best way I can discuss this book is by talking about the highlights of each of its eleven parts:

Part 1: This is about Mr. Mandela's childhood in the country. He talks about his family tree. His family came from the royal household of the Thembu tribe: his father was an adviser to kings, and a wealthy nobleman who lost his holdings when he was fired by a magistrate from England--even though he believed that he only answered to Thembu custom and not "by the laws of the king of England." The Mandela family chieftainship was then ended. His father died when he was young and his mother handed him over to a Xhosa chief named Jongubtaba, who had offered to be his guardian.

Part 2: Mandela escapes the chief's house (along with the chief's biological son) when he learns that marriage, and a set lifestyle that included rules and no personal freedom, had been arranged for them ("My head told me it was the right of every man to plan his own future as he pleased and choose his role in life.") He escaped to Johannesburg, where he worked as a night watchman and later as a law clerk as he completed his law degree ("my performance as a law student was dismal").

Part 3: Nelson Mandela as a freedom fighter. This section goes into details about the startup of the ANC, dispelling some myths. He also talks about his first wife, Evelyn Mase. The most profound and telling statement from this section (and arguably, the book) is this one:

"I had no epiphany, no singular revelation, no moment of truth, but a steady accumulation of a thousand slights, a thousand indignities, a thousand unremembered moments, produced in me an anger, a rebelliousness, a desire to fight the system that imprisoned my people. There was no particular day on which I said, From henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise. "

Part 4: This section details the beginning of the struggle. During this time, President Mandela opened his law firm. He talks about being harrassed in court by judges and attorneys, about being served an order from the police that would legally ban him from the ANC at age thirty-five.

Part 5: Mandela discusses his first divorce and his second marriage, as well as prison life. This is where the female contribution to the apartheid struggle is introduced: "...when the women begin to take an active part in the struggle, no power on earth can stop us from achieving freedom in our lifetime." I enjoyed seeing the admiration he had for his second wife, Winnie Madikizela, pour through in this section.

Part 6: The part that stood out for me in this section: his travels to West Africa where the anti-apartheid movement received financial and moral support from West African heads of state in Liberia, Mali, Guinea, Ghana, Sierra Leone, etc. This is also the section where he discusses the violence that had increased in African townships and the decision the ANC made to add guerrilla fighters to the resistance (MK).

Part 7: After living underground for seventeen months, President Mandela was arrested for "inciting African workers to strike and for leaving the country without valid travel documents" (1962). At first he was given five years. Later, someone from his organization (the guerrilla MK) would become a snitch for the police and a few executives from the organization, including Mandela, would be jailed for years.

Part 8: This was a heart-wrenching section. He talks about the dark years on Robben Island: "I could walk the length of my cell in three paces. When I lay down, I could feel the wall with my feet and my head grazed the concrete at the other side....I was forty-six years old, a political prisoner with a life sentence." He was entitled to have only one visitor and receive one letter within a six month timeframe. During this time, his wife was being harassed, jailed, interrogated, held in solitary confinement, and he wondered, "What were the authorities doing to my wife? How would she bear up? Who was looking after our daughters? Who would pay the bills?"

Part 9: Mr. Mandela's role as an underground leader was finally visible to the public. Keep in mind, when he was first jailed, people had no idea how he looked like because pictures were banned and the prisoners even had to steal newspapers which were considered contraband. Negotiations had started and this is also when he started to write this book, "I adopted a rather unorthodox work schedule: I would write most of the night and sleep during the day." He also mentioned a student boycott in this section that was mentioned in Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa

Part 10: Serious negotiations with the government and the incoming president, De Klerk. This section showcased one of Mr. Mandela's strengths: inclusiveness. He even stated that he wasn't in favor of having his white brothers leave, he just wanted his black brothers to have rights to their country. Pivotal moment I think, especially if you've read a lot of books on post colonialism.

Part 11: Freedom, separation from his wife, details of diplomatic meetings. This section is an invigorating read as President Mandela describes the crowds upon his release, his meetings with old friends, etc. One great moment was his reminder of seeing Mrs. King seated on the stage when he gave his first speech after being released: "Mrs. Coretta Scott King, the wife of the great freedom fighter Martin Luther King Jr.. was on the podium that night, and I looked over to her as I made my reference to her husband's immortal words..." Breathtaking moment. It made me want to re-read a few of the biographies I've read on Dr. King.

"I was not born with a hunger to be free. I was born free." -Nelson Mandela(less)
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Mar 29, 2016ZaRi added it · review of another edition
Shelves: memory, novel, spiritual, autobiography
برای من لحظه مشخصی برای کشف حقیقت نبوده و هیچ چیز بخصوصی ناگهان الهام بخش من نشده، بلکه فقط مجموعه ای منظم از هزاران مورد بی حرمتی، هزاران مورد خرد شدن شخصیت و هزاران مورد لحظه از یاد رفته مرا به خشم می آورد، شورشی می کرد و این خواسته را در من تقویت می کرد که با سیستمی که مردم مرا اسیر خود کرده مبارزه کنم.
هیچ روز بخصوصی وجود نداشته که در آن روز گفته باشم از امروز به بعد زندگی خود را وقف آزادی مردم می کنم، بلکه فقط پی بردم که در حال مبارزه هستم و جز این نمی توانم کار دیگری انجام دهم...!
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Nov 04, 2011NG rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: 2011, autobiography, foreign, history, politics, translated, war
من أحلى كتب السير الذاتية التي قرأتها، وأكثرها صلة بنضالنا في العالم العربي من أجل الحرية والديمقراطية. تبدأ مع طفولة المتناضل الأفريقي الأشهر نيلسون مانديلا، وتنتهي بتوليه الرئاسة في بلده، لكن نهاية الكتاب هي في الحقيقية بداية، فهي وعد باستكمال طريق النضال الطويل نحو الحرية..

لن أتحدث طويلا عن الكتاب، لكني سأنقل بعض العبارات والمقاطع منه التي أراها الاهم، أو الأشد صلة بواقعنا العربي، أو -وهو الأغلب- المقاطع التي تحمل افكارا استغربت أن تصدر عن مناضل مثله، وعلى سبيل المثال خلافه مع بعض من قادة "ال ...more
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Feb 27, 2017Alex rated it it was amazing
Shelves: 2017, africa
Long Walk to Freedom is the first book I've read by the leader of a country containing instructions on how to overthrow a country.

Mandela is serious about this. He mentions that when his African National Congress decided to commit to violence, they read "works by and about Che Guevara, Mao Tse-tung, Fidel Castro" to figure out how to do it. The phrase "A freedom fighter must..." recurs. He means this to be read by freedom fighters. This book is many things, but maybe the most important thing is a manual for revolution.

It's also a defense of Mandela's legacy, and that part is interesting too. Mandela won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, which seemed odd to everyone since he has not advocated peace. "I called for nonviolent protest for as long as it was effective," he says. When it was ineffective, "I was candid and explained why I believed we had no choice but to turn to violence." He lays out the "four types of violent activities," which should be undertaken in order: "sabotage, guerrilla warfare, terrorism, and open revolution." The ANC never moved beyond sabotage, but he says clearly: "we were prepared to move on to the next stage: guerrilla warfare and terrorism." So maybe I shouldn't say defense. It's a clarification.

This sets us up for the most dramatic scene in the book, and one of the most dramatic in history: the Rivonia Trial in 1964, in which Mandela and several others were sentenced to life in prison for sabotage. This was a victory: death was on the table. Mandela chose not to defend himself; instead he delivered a statement about which his lawyers said, "If Mandela reads this in court they will take him out in back of the courthouse and string him up." Here's part of his statement:

I planned sabotage. I did not plan it in a spirit of recklessness nor because I have any love of violence, I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation after many years of tyranny, exploitation, and oppression of my people by whites.

During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.
You can actually hear part of this speech here - skip to 2:10 if you're in a hurry. It's an incredible thing to listen to.

I grew up while Mandela was in prison, and apartheid in South Africa was the first injustice I was aware of. My first experience with activism, in Amherst MA with the mighty activist Frances Crow, was running around town putting up posters with Mandela's face on them. Mandela screwed up my hair: in high school my mom wouldn't let me grow it long until I claimed that I wasn't cutting it until Mandela was freed, which she felt she couldn't argue with. They freed him like six months later and I was like aw, man. It seemed like a foolproof plan! I got to see him speak shortly afterwards in Boston on his freedom tour, but I didn't have a chance to tell him about my hair.

This is all to say that reading this book was a powerful experience for me. Mandela is one of history's true heroes of freedom. To be able to read his words is special and of immense value. I got actual chills at times, reading about how (for example) he refused to be freed if it meant compromising his movement. He was in jail for nearly 30 years. This isn't one of those books that makes you realize that the writer is just a person like you and me. Mandela was not like you and me. He was a titan. (less)
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