In Praise of Mandela. By Rev Jesse Jackson

Speech at the UN

And even now as Mr. Mandela enters into what might well be the evening of his years with the sun soon setting just beyond the reach of his most loftiest achievements, he is again summoning the attention of the world as he beckons us to be mindful of the fragility of life

For let us never forget that it is because of the life and personal sacrifice of Mr. Mandela that South Africa is a different nation today.

The dark night of Apartheid and racial disparity did not come to an end on its own—for those of us who have dedicated our lives to the possibility of freedom and equality understand with amazing clarity that social transformation is an intentional act.

The south Africa we celebrate today is result of the deliberate struggle of millions people both on the continent and around the world who somehow believed that midnight could not last forever—and so we fought.

Sometimes with tears in ours eyes but we kept on fighting.

We lost a few friends along the way—but we kept on fighting.

And there were times when we had to take up our struggle against the better judgment of the so-called civilized world—but James Russell Lowell was right:

Truth forever on the scaffold, Wrong forever on the throne, Yet that scaffold sways the future, and behind the dim unknown, Standeth God within the shadow, keeping watch above his own."

Mr. Mandela’s 27 years in prison is reminder to all of us that sometimes you have to be willing to toil in a tight place to create open space for democracy to flourish and grow.

We here must highly resolve that Nelson Mandela did not henceforth labor in vain.

And even now as we celebrate the event of his birth we must do more than give mere commendation to his struggle

That kind of empty commemoration is too small for Mr. Mandela—for if we are to truly celebrate the man in whose name we have dared to gather then the aim this celebration must be as big as he continues to be

And how do you celebrate a man called to fight for truth in a world build upon many lies? The answer in simple - by taking our place among that great cloud of witnesses so that we like them might push our shoulders against the great wheel of history until one world dies and another world is born

For let us never forget that before he was a President, Nelson Mandela was a freedom fighter

And today we cherish his struggle and take our peace from the solemn pride that must be his to have laid such a costly sacrifice upon the altars of freedom and love

Today we honor the courage of Mr. Mandela as he is for us a constant reminder that truth crushed down to earth will invariably rise again.

Mr. Mandela is our living response to all the cynics who seek to convince us that the world will forever be as it is now

In closing, let me simply say that that the world will little note nor long remember what we say here today—but it will never forget the living witness of Nelson Mandela.

He is a giant among men.

We don’t know how long he will able to labor among us—but Shakesphere said it best

And when he shall die, take him and cut him into little stars, And he make the face of heaven so fine That all the world will fall in love with night And pay no worship to the garish sun."

Rev Jesse Jackson