Rolihlahla Mandela was born in 1918 in a small village on South Africa’s Eastern Cape. His parents were Thembu, a tribal group of the Xhosa people, and his father was the village chief. The first of his family to receive a formal education, Mandela was given the first name Nelson by a teacher in adherence with the custom of assigning students English names.

Question

In 1941, Mandela moved to Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city. Here he experienced the injustice of racial segregation for the first time. Three years later, he joined the African National Congress (ANC), a Black liberation movement and political party, and founded the group’s youth wing. Over the next two decades, Mandela became a prominent anti-apartheid activist, forming a militant ANC branch called Umkhonto we Sizwe in response to the state’s violent actions against protesters. In 1962, he was arrested and charged with treason, and two years later, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

In total, Mandela spent 27 years of his life in prison. He became a symbol of resistance who fueled the growing global anti-apartheid movement. As international outrage intensified during the 1980s, the still-incarcerated Mandela negotiated with politicians to dismantle the regime. In 1990, he was released from prison. Over the next decade, he drafted a new federal constitution, won the Nobel Peace Prize, and became the first Black president of South Africa. Though he retired from public service in 1999, he continued his work as a humanitarian until his death in 2013.

With which of the following statements would Mandela most likely agree?

A
It is not worth risking your life to stand up for your beliefs.

B
Protesters should never resort to violent action.

C
Physical force is sometimes necessary to fight oppression.

D
One person can create a social movement.

Answer 1

C: Physical force is sometimes necessary to fight oppression.

Mandela would likely agree with this statement based on his experiences as an anti-apartheid activist. He was involved in founding Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress, as a response to the violent repression of protests against apartheid. While he advocated for peaceful protest and negotiations, he also recognized that in some circumstances, particularly against oppressive regimes, physical force might be a necessary means to achieve liberation and justice.