Nelson Mandela International Day 2022: Significance, Interesting Facts and Inspirational Quotes

NELSON MANDELA INTERNATIONAL DAY: The United Nations officially designated Nelson Mandela International Day or Mandela Day in November 2009. Every year on July 18, Mandela Day is celebrated on the birth anniversary of the former President of South Africa. The day is celebrated worldwide to commemorate achievements of the anti-apartheid leader and to carry forward his legacy for a better future.

Mandela Day, also known as Nelson Mandela International Day, is a celebration of the 67-year long fight of the South African leader against the racial discrimination and human rights abuses. He was the country’s first black president. The purpose of the day is to inspire everyone to make a difference in their communities by following the ideology and vision of Mandela.

Nelson Mandela International Day: History

The United Nations officially designated Nelson Mandela International Day or Mandela Day in November 2009, with the first celebration taking place on July 18, 2010. Each year, Nelson Mandela International Day sheds a focus on the legacy of a man whose colossal achievements transformed the twentieth century.

He was the recipient of more than 250 awards, including the Nobel Prize. The United Nations General Assembly instituted the Nelson Mandela Prize in 2014 to honour those who have dedicated their lives to serving humanity.

Interesting Facts about Nelson Mandela

1. Mandela’s birth name was Rolihlahla, which means ‘pulling the branch of a tree’ or ‘troublemaker’ in his tribe. On his first day of elementary school, his teacher gave him the name ‘Nelson’.
2. Graça Machel, the wife of Nelson Mandela was first married to Mozambique President Samora Machel. Following the death of her husband, she married
   Mandela, on his 80th birthday.
3. Nelson Mandela had a passion for boxing.
4. Nelson appeared in Spike Lee’s 1992 biopic Malcolm X. He made a
   cameo appearance in the role of a teacher.
5. In 1952, he established the nation’s first Black legal firm in Johannesburg after studying law at the University of Witwatersrand.

Nelson Mandela’s inspirational quotes

1. “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change
the world”

2. “It is in your hands, to make a better world for all who live in
it”

3. “A winner is a dreamer who never gives up”

4. “Overcoming poverty is not a task of charity, it is an act of
justice”.