Remembering Nelson Mandela: Quotes, Poems & Passages

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Nelson Mandela once said, "It is never my custom to use words lightly. If 27 years in prison have done anything to us, it was to use the silence of solitude to make us understand how precious words are and how real speech is in its impact on the way people live and die."

Indeed, Nelson Mandela, the hero of millions, has uttered and written many words of wisdom and inspiration throughout his lifetime. Here are some of his best quotes:

"A good head and a good heart always a formidable combination"

"Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another."

"I learned that courage was the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects the freedom of others." 

"There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living."

"It always seems impossible until it's done."

"Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again."

"In my country we go to prison first and then become president."

"Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished." 

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."

"There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the way in which you yourself have altered."

"If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner." 

"After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb."

"It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership."

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Besides composing his own words of wisdom, Mandela had some good taste in poems and passages. For example, while Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on Robben Island, he discovered the poem "Invictus" by William Ernest Henley and loved its message. As seen in the 2009 film of the same name, Mandela often recited the poem to other prisoners.

Below is Henley's "Invictus" poem in its entirety:

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance 
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishment the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

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When Mandela became the President of South Africa in 1994, he sent the captain of the South African rugby team a copy of the "Man in the Arena" passage – also quoted by Brené Brown in her TED talk about vulnerability – from President Theordore "Teddy" Roosevelt's "Citizenship in a Republic"speech. Mandela inspired the South African rugby team to defeat my other home country New Zealand in the 1995 Rugby World Cup final in an emotional sweep. As seen in the film Invictus, Mandela walked onto the field after the win wearing the South African team's green rugby jersey as 80,000 fans burst into chants of "Nel-son! Nel-son!"

Teddy Roosevelt's "Man in the Arena" passage goes as follows:

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." 

50 Years Later: Remember J.F.K.'s Assassination Through Photos

President Kennedy, his wife Jacqueline Kennedy & Governor of
Texas John Connally minutes before the President was shot.

Today is 50 years after the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. President Kennedy was the 35th president of the United States, serving from January 20, 1961 until he was assassinated on November 22, 1963. Out of the four successful presidential assassinations, J.F.K's assassination – along with that of Abraham Lincoln – is one of the better known presidential assassinations. The other two presidents were James A. Garfield and William McKinley; there were also unsuccessful assassination attempts on former Presidents Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan.


To commemorate 50 years since President Kennedy's passing, let us travel back in time to revisit the story through the extensive amount of photographs that were captured on and after the day of the assassination.

A map showing Dealy Plaza with the route taken by the Presidential limousine for President Kennedy's visit to Dallas, Texas. The route was planned to give the President maximum exposure to the crowd.

President Kennedy, first lady Jacqueline "Jackie" Kennedy, Texas Governor John Connally and his wife Nellie Connally depart in the presidential motorcade for downtown Dallas. The President asked about the weather earlier and decided to keep the top down on the limousine.

The Presidential motorcade was met with a warm reception Downtown. Texas first lady Nellie Connally said, "Mr. President, you can't say Dallas doesn't love you," before the first shot rang out.

Photo taken right after the fatal shot to the President. The first lady is cradling the President, who had slumped forward after the first bullets hit him. "Oh my God... They've shot my husband," she said.

Bill and Gayle Newman, the closest civilian eyewitnesses to the assassination, dropped to the ground to shield their children from the gunshots. About 30 seconds later, photographers ran after the motorcade.

Howard Brennan, a steamfitter seen in the photo sitting across the street from the Texas School Book Depository, notified the police that he heard shots come from above and looked up to see a man with a rifle make another shot from a corner window on the sixth floor (Circle A).

As the limousine races towards Parkland Hospital, Secret Service agent Clint Hill, who had been assigned to protect the first lady, climbed onto the limousine. When the limousine arrives at the hospital, the first lady is heard saying, "They murdered my husband; they murdered my husband."

Soon, there is a crowd outside the hospital. 

Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson's driver (left) and others listen to news accounts of the President's assassination on the car radio outside the Parkland Hospital's emergency entrance.

Dr. Tom Shires describes the wounds of President Kennedy to the press. Four doctors had worked on the President in the emergency room. 

Walter Cronkite, anchor of CBS Evening News and "the most trusted man in America," makes an emotional confirmation of Kennedy's death on TV. "From Dallas, Texas, the flash – apparently official – President Kennedy died," Cronkite said.

Lee Harvey Oswald (centre back) is arrested for the assassination. 

Before a trial can take place, while being escorted to a car to Dallas County Jail two days after his arrest, Oswald is shot and killed by Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby. The shooting happened on live television. Ruby is arrested right after and said he wanted to spare Mrs. Kennedy from having to go through a trial.

President Kennedy's casket is taken onboard Air Force One.

Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in as the President of the United States on Air Force One with Mrs. Kennedy at his side. Mrs. Kennedy was still wearing her pink suit that had been stained with her husband's blood. She said, "I want them to see what they've done to Jack."

President Kennedy's younger brother and Attorney General Robert Kennedy holds Jackie Kennedy's hand as President Kennedy's coffin is placed in an ambulance after arriving at an Air Force One Base near Washington.

Three year-old John F. Kennedy Jr. salutes his father's casket in Washington three days after the assassination. President Kennedy's daughter Caroline Kennedy, widow Jacqueline Kennedy and brothers Senator Edward Kennedy (left) and General Attorney Robert Kennedy (right) are also present. While campaigning to run for President in 1968, Robert Kennedy would be assassinated on June 6, 1968 in the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

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After a 10-month investigation, the Warren Commission concluded that President Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald, who was acting alone, and that Jack Ruby also acted alone when he killed Oswald before the trial. However, the public opinion has shifted since then, with many believing that President Kennedy's assassination was part of a plot or cover-up and as a result of a conspiracy. There are many theories out there, and if you are interested, you can read about them here and check out the movie JFK, which also examines some of the possible conspiracy theories (It's a fantastic movie).

All photos via Wikipedia, The Dallas News & the SacBee.

To this day, President Kennedy remains one of America's favourite presidents, along with Presidents Lincoln, Washington and Roosevelt. President Kennedy was against segregation and supported the rights of African Americans. A century (100 years) after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, Kennedy became the first president to call on Americans to see racism as morally wrong. With the help of his successor Lyndon Johnson, Kennedy's work would later lead to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which ended segregation and made racism and discrimination illegal.

Not only that, many of Kennedy's speeches have become very famous, especially his inaugural address, which you can watch here. There are numerous memorials dedicated to him, including the airport in New York, which was renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport in 1963.

If you are interested, the New York Times has a fantastic interactive about J.F.K's assassination. Check it out here.