Mandela Was Average

It’s Nelson Mandela’s 95^th birthday today, and most people think that he won’t see 96. When he dies, the news is sure to give blanket coverage on what a hero he was. As an anti-apartheid crusader Mandela was one of the best, and that part of his legacy is deserved; but as a political leader people have generally fawned over him seemingly for the sake of it. Of course he helped to stem the racist trends in South Africa, and he pumped a lot more money into social welfare, but those achievements must be remembered alongside his political failings. AIDS has been a terrible problem in the country for a generation; Mandela decided not to bother focusing on one of the worst health issues of all time, and admitted himself that he left it for his successor to deal with (something that didn’t happen either!). At the time Mandela left office South Africa had one of the world’s highest crime rates, and as much as apartheid structures have been deconstructed, there are still plenty of ghettos left in poorer areas demonstrating how the great rush for equality didn’t quite materialise as expected. As a man, Mandela received understandable high praise for his ideologies, but as a politician, he was average, and I hope more people will try to remember that.