Nelson Mandela was born July 18th, 1918 and died in December 5th, 2013 of respiratory tract infection, which is infectious diseases involving the respiratory tract. Everyone has heard of Nelson Mandela but many people don’t really know why he is such an important person in history. He was at the forefront of the South African people’s fight for independence and racial equality and was the first South African president to be elected democratically. Nelson was able to go to law school because he was from a rich family. As a young lawyer, he joined the African National Congress and created a series of non-violent acts of massive resistance. Nelson intended to correct the injustices of apartheid by joining the mistreated and challenging the authority of the National Party through means of legal action and protest. In 1962 he was convicted of trying to overthrow the government and was put in jail for 27 years. He was released in 1990 because of an international campaign made up of his loyal followers who has supported him. After Nelson was released, he became president of African National Congress, he became the first black president of South Africa. He made a constitution that gave blacks equal rights and sought justice for the abused. He is referred to as “The Father of the Nation” in South Africa because he had the courage to stand up to a force no one else thought could be overcome and was willing to risk his life to fight for the freedom of his people.