“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” ~ Nelson Mandela (born July 18, 1918)
Mandela is South African. He was an anti-apartheid activist, leader of the armed wing of the African National Congress (ANC), and was jailed in 1962.
Within the past few days we have marked the anniversaries of Steven Biko’s death and of Desmond Tutu leading the largest anti-apartheid rally in South Africa. Even though apartheid was made official policy as late as 1948, it certainly was entrenched and difficult to overturn; it was ended in 1994.
After imprisonment which lasted for 27 years, Nelson Mandela was finally freed from Robben Island Prison in 1990. He eventually became President of a new South Africa and served from 1994 to 1999. He is a Nobel Peace Laureate, and an advocate for national and international reconciliation. His autobiography is Long Walk to Freedom (1994).
[Source: quotation from DavidRoads (Motivational Quotes) on Twitter, September 10, 2010. Quotation verified through use of BrainyQuotes.com, accessed on September 13, 2010. A significant amount of the above information was already known to me. Biographical information and date verified through use of Wikipedia, accessed on September 13, 2010].
Andrew Shattuck McBride, Writer's Blog 