(The KanKouran West African Dance Company processes into Emancipation Hall in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center for a ceremony celebrating the life, legacy, and values of Nelson Mandela. Official Photo by Heather Reed.)
House and Senate leaders held a ceremony today celebrating the life, legacy and values of Nelson Mandela, Nobel Peace Prize winner and former president of South Africa, on the occasion of his 95th birthday. During the event, members of Congress read excerpts from speeches, letters, and writings that span the course of Mandela's life.
ChildhoodSen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Assistant Majority Leader
“At birth my father gave me the name Rolihlahla, which literally means 'pulling the branch of a tree' and more accurately, 'troublemaker'. … My English name was given to me by my class teacher on the first day I attended school. … Nobody ever sat with me at regular intervals to give me a clear and connected account of the history of our country… I acquired knowledge by asking questions to satisfy my curiosity as I grew up, learnt through experience, watched adults and tried to imitate what they did.”
“I came across few whites as a boy… The local magistrate, of course, was white, as was the nearest shopkeeper. Occasionally white travelers or policemen passed through our area. These whites appeared as grand as gods to me… But their role in my life was a distant one, and I thought little if at all about the white man in general or relations between my own people and these curious and remote figures.”
Freedom FighterSen. John Cornyn (R-TX), Republican Whip
“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, ‘Henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people’; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise.”
“The National Day of Protest on June 26th 1950 was the first national campaign in which I took part and at the end of that day I felt the exhilaration that springs from the success of an important venture one has helped to plan. …In the leading cities the majority of the workers stayed away from work and black business men closed their shops. … The success of this day raised our morale and served as a warning to the… government that the people would resist apartheid to the bitter end.”
Freedom FighterRep. Eric Cantor (R-VA), Majority Leader
“I am informed that a warrant for my arrest has been issued, and that the police are looking for me. ... I have had to separate myself from my dear wife and children, from my mother and sisters, to live as an outlaw in my own land.
“I shall fight the government side by side with you, inch by inch, and mile by mile, until victory is won. … Will you come along with us, or are you going to cooperate with the government in its efforts to suppress the claims and aspirations of your own people? Or are you going to remain silent and neutral in a matter of life and death to my people, to our people?
“For my own part I have made my choice. I will not leave South Africa, nor will I surrender. Only through hardship, sacrifice and militant action can freedom be won. The struggle is my life. I will continue fighting for freedom until the end of my days.
PrisonerRep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Majority Whip
April 20, 1964
The Dock at Pretoria, South Africa
“I am the First Accused. I am a convicted prisoner serving five years for leaving the country without a permit and for inciting people to go on strike…
“In my youth … I listened to the elders of my tribe telling stories of the old days. Amongst the tales they related to me were those of wars fought by our ancestors in defense of the fatherland. I hoped then that life might offer me the opportunity to serve my people and make my own humble contribution to their freedom struggle. …
“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.”
Prisoner/HusbandRep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Democratic Whip
June 23, 1969
Robben Island, off the coast of Cape Town
“My dearest Winnie,
“A new world will be won not by those who stand at a distance with their arms folded, but by those who are in the arena, whose garments are torn by storms and whose bodies are maimed in the course of the contest.
“Honor belongs to those who never forsake the truth even when things seem dark and grim, who try over and over again, who are never discouraged by insults, humiliation and even defeat.
“Since the dawn of history, mankind has honored and respected brave and honest people, men and women like you darling, an ordinary girl who hails from a country village hardly shown in most maps…
“My sense of devotion to you precludes me from saying more in public than I have already done in this note which must pass through many hands.”
Prisoner/PrincipleRep. James Clyburn (D-SC), Assistant Democratic Leader
April 1, 1985
Robben Island, off the coast of Cape Town
“The ideals we cherish, our fondest dreams and fervent hopes may not be realized in our lifetime. But that is besides the point. The knowledge that in your day you did your duty, and lived up to the expectations of your fellow men is in itself a rewarding experience and magnificent achievement.”
“I am also aware that massive efforts have been made here and abroad for my release … a realistic approach clearly shows that we must rule out completely the possibility that such a demand will succeed. But I am highly optimistic, even behind prison walls I can see the heavy clouds and the blue sky over the horizon, that however wrong our calculations have been and whatever difficulties we still must face, that in my lifetime I shall step out into the sunshine, walk with firm feet because that event will be brought about by the strength of my organization and the sheer determination of our people.”
ReleaseRep. Charles Rangel (D-NY)
February 11, 1990
Cape Town, South Africa
“Comrades and fellow South Africans, I stand here before you not as a prophet but as a humble servant of you, the people. … On this day of my release, I extend my sincere and warmest gratitude to the millions of my compatriots and those in every corner of the globe who have campaigned tirelessly for my release. ...
“Today the majority of South Africans, black and white, recognize that apartheid has no future. It has to be ended by our own decisive mass action in order to build peace and security.
“Our struggle has reached a decisive moment: We call on our people to seize this moment, so that the process toward democracy Is rapid and uninterrupted.
“We have waited too long for our freedom. We can no longer wait. Now is the time to intensify the struggle on all fronts. To relax our efforts now would be a mistake which generations to come will not be able to forgive.
“Our march toward freedom is irreversible. We must not allow fear to stand in our way. Universal suffrage on a common voters` role in a united democratic and non-racial South Africa is the only way to peace and racial harmony.”
Peace Prize WinnerRep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee
December 10, 1993
Oslo, Norway
“We do not believe that this Nobel Peace Prize is intended as a commendation for matters that have happened and passed. We hear the voices which say that it is an appeal from all those, throughout the universe, who sought an end to the system of apartheid. …
“Moved by that appeal and inspired by the eminence you have thrust upon us, we undertake that we too will do what we can to contribute to the renewal of our world so that none should, in future, be described as the ‘wretched of the earth.’ …
“Let the strivings of us all, prove Martin Luther King Jr. to have been correct, when he said that humanity can no longer be tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war.
“Let the efforts of us all, prove that he was not a mere dreamer when he spoke of the beauty of genuine brotherhood and peace being more precious than diamonds or silver or gold.”
PresidentRep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH), Chair, Congressional Black Caucus
May 10, 1994
Pretoria, South Africa
Inauguration Day
“We, the people of South Africa, feel fulfilled that humanity has taken us back into its bosom, that we, who were outlaws not so long ago, have today been given the rare privilege to be host to the nations of the world on our own soil. …
“The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come. … We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. …
“We understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom. We know it well that none of us acting alone can achieve success.
“We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world. …
“Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another and suffer the indignity of being the skunk of the world. Let freedom reign.”
Retirement
Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
September 21, 1998
New York City
“This is probably the last time I will have the honor to stand at this podium to address the General Assembly.
“Born as the First World War came to a close and departing from public life as the world marks half a century of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I have reached that part of the long walk when the opportunity is granted, as it should be to all men and women, to retire to some rest and tranquility in the village of my birth.
“As I sit … and grow as ancient as its hills, I will continue to entertain the hope that there has emerged a cadre of leaders in my own country and region, on my continent and in the world, which will not allow that any should be denied their freedom as we were; that any should be turned into refugees as we were; that any should be condemned to go hungry as we were; that any should be stripped of their human dignity as we were.
“Were all these hopes to translate into a realizable dream and not a nightmare to torment the soul of the aged, then will I, indeed, have peace and tranquility.
“Then would history and the billions throughout the world proclaim that it was right that we dreamed and that we toiled to give life to a workable dream.”