I cannot pinpoint a moment when I became politicized, when I knew that I would spend my life in the liberation struggle. To be an African in South Africa means that one is politicized from the moment of one's birth, whether one acknowledges it or not.. His life is circumscribed by racist laws and regulations that cripple his growth, dim his potential, and stunt his life.. 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. Nelson Mandela
About This Quote

Nelson Mandela is an icon. He has stood up for the rights of South Africans in a way that few others have. However, he never became "politicized" in the sense that he became obsessed with his cause. Rather, he discovered that he had to dedicate his life to freeing his people.

He didn't decide to be part of the struggle; rather, his time in prison taught him that he had to fight. Once he understood this, there was no way for him to step away from it.

Source: Long Walk To Freedom

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