Nelson MandelaA young man is faced with two options for his life: live out the expected norm for royalty, complete with the best education that status can afford, marry a preselected wife and accept a quiet, undisruptive yet comfortable life; or he can create his own opportunity to have a voice and stand for positive change that would impact a nation, enjoy a life in the spotlight under the scrutiny of authorities and challenge accepted social norms. Which would YOU choose? The young man described is Nelson Mandela, a captivating man of the people; an inspiring leader. He, though adopted at a young age and raised in sophistication and surrounded by wealth, chose to make his mark as a leader by speaking up for his African people and in 1942 “he became actively involved in the anti-apartheid movement and joined the African National Congress…For 20 years, he directed a campaign of peaceful, nonviolent defiance against the South African government and it’s racist policies. In 1994, he was inaugurated as the country’s first black president” (Mandela, 2012).
Leadership as defined by Organizational Behavior is “the process of influencing others to understand and agree about what needs to be done and how to do it, and the process of facilitating individual and collective efforts to accomplish shared objectives” (Hunt, Osborn, Schermerhorn, 2010, p. 306). During his life, Mandela showed that he could use his virtue, charisma, and visionary prowess to lead South Africa’s people toward unity and democracy. He motivated the nation with his appeal to the common goal of a desegregated nation. He effectively managed conflict in his fight for racial equality and rights for all by using nonviolent approaches such as boycotts, strikes and mass rallies. And he set the example for his people to follow to be most effective at attaining their goals, even from behind bars.
The Mandela family is famous for their involvement in the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with Rep. Joseph R. Mook as co-sponsor; Rep. Steve Israel (D, WI) joined with Rook as co-sponsor, and South Africans support the amendment.
In the fall of 2011, one of the first acts of action by the Obama Administration took place for national security, as they adopted a draft amendment that was published by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBR) on March 20. There, they drafted and accepted by a bipartisan group of congressmen the “Mideast Affairs Amendment”, which would have banned US military bases or locations in the Middle East and Africa. Under the amendment, a US military will start a military base or in any other country, but it cannot be located near a land line in a given country. Moreover, the proposed amendments would also prohibit the U.S. military from sending troops beyond a military base or on a given continent by a special military order or mandate. This proposed move was a major blow to the American military’s commitment to the region and made it more vulnerable in the eyes of the U.S. media.
The document went further and passed the House of Representatives unanimously when it was formally introduced and signed by nine of the nine members from the Black Caucus. The document will receive the “Mideast Affairs” vote only if every member of the House support it. Rep . Joe Stivers sponsored the amendment, and the Congressional Black Caucus will be pushing again on another section to be added to the Mideast Affairs Amendment. In this section, the House will pass the bill along with one Democratic senator and one Republican, which will come to a vote through the same votes as the White House legislation.
An early stage of the process for making the Mideast Affairs amendment will take place on May 21. As the draft amendment goes to a House version—which has not yet been published—it will include a list of key words and clauses that would allow the amendment to pass this House. Some of these statements have taken place inside House committees where amendments are considered. The list may include:
Slavery and the war on poverty.
Government spending, especially on military spending, “just to take the road to hell?”
Homosexuality.
Sexual assault.
Public schools.
Social security.
Evaluating black citizens.
“Don’t We All Need to Win?”
“Can One Race Win? Democracy and American Values, Part 1: Understanding, Performing, And Concretely Engaging in Race Relations.”
The House Minority Platform was developed by the Black Caucus during the 2010 Presidential campaign. It outlined the major issues discussed by black people regarding issues that affected each of the country’s 25 million South Africans.
The platform outlined several key themes of concern for every African. These included:
Black Americans have the right to live in a nation where they feel entitled to full equality under the law, where they understand that government rights may not be used for personal enrichment, where racial animosity toward other races,