nelson mandela

In 1999, a white South African, Dennis Dupree, opened a restaurant in Fort Greene, Brooklyn along with his brother and sister-in-law. They named it Madiba, the clan name used by many South Africans to refer affectionately to Nelson Mandela. When people in Brooklyn heard the news of Mandela's death, many quickly gathered at Madiba.

In an Expert’s Brief I published yesterday, I reflected on Nelson Mandela’s achievements as the father of the democratic, non-racial South Africa that replaced the odious and repressive apartheid state. A lawyer himself–one of the first Blacks called to the South African bar–Mandela was devoted to the rule of law. Once in office, his governance was characterized by racial reconciliation, which he shrewdly promoted through the use of symbols. Like President Obama, he sought “teachable moments.”

According to the Nelson Mandela Centre for Memory, no fewer than 120 streets, roads, boulevards, avenues, bridges, and highways have been named after the first democratically elected president of South Africa, who turns 95 today. A thorough search turned up more than 140, including 50 in South Africa and 10 in the United States. This map include streets that carry Mandela's birth name, Rolihlahla, and clan name, Madiba.

On the sad occasion of Nelson Mandela’s death, it’s worth recalling his words on languages: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.” I read that quote on a poster on the wall at the Beijing Language and Cultural University on a smoggy morning this September – BLCU is one of the British Council’s longest standing and biggest partners in China.

On the sad occasion of Nelson Mandela’s death, it’s worth recalling his words on languages: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.”

The 95-year-old Nobel laureate is also one of the world's most recognizable figures. More than just a man, he has become a global brand -- one that's estimated to be worth millions of dollars. Ever since Mandela was released from prison, where he had endured 27 years for fighting apartheid, many South Africans have felt like they'd like to "own" a little piece of him.

One of his daughters and three of his grandchildren are using the former South African president's name in such pursuits as wine marketing and a reality television show, Being Mandela. His relatives also were embroiled in two lawsuits to secure control over his trust funds and the burial places of the remains of three of his children.

A copy of ‘The Complete Works of Shakespeare’ with a favourite passage from ‘Julius Caesar’ that Nelson Mandela inscribed with his signature will be displayed at the British Museum next month. The book is in fact a a copy of The Complete Works of Shakespeare that former Robben Island prisoner Sonny Venkatrathnam kept in his cell. Venkatrathnam disguised its cover with Diwali cards to prevent its seizure by prison authorities. He eventually passed it to 33 of his friends and fellow South African political prisoners, asking them to sign a passage that meant a lot to them.

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