By Francisco Omar Fernandez Rodriguez Arts & Features Editor Ndaba Mandela shared his life experiences and dreams at the Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration in the Dwight Performing Arts Center Auditorium, Jan. 23. Mandela said he grew up in the apartheid regime in South Africa with his grandmother. In apartheid there was a system where a person’s race determined their social status, which went from top to bottom “white, Indian, colored, and Black,” he said. He didn’t know his grandfather until he had to visit him in jail, Mandela said. But instead of the prison cell he was expecting, Nelson was locked in a house, with a swimming pool. They were trying to break him, and to convince Nelson to denounce his movement in exchange for the house for him and his family, Ndaba Mandela said. “That was the day I had an idea of what I wanted to do when I grew up. Most kids want to be doctors and lawyers and astronauts. I told myself that day ‘When I grow up, I want to go to jail,’” Mandela said, followed by laughter from the audience. Nelson was eventually freed. “But let me tell you the people that were truly behind the freedom of Nelson Mandela,” he said. “It was actually young kids, young students, same age as you, who put their bodies on the line, who went to … Washington, D.C. to get arrested, to say ‘We shall not move until Mandela is removed from prison.’ It was kids your age,” Mandela said. “It was the power of the purse, ladies and gentlemen, that got them to turn the tide against apartheid,” he said. Companies such as Coca-Cola and Kodak did business with South Africa, Mandela said. Students and other activists “made a statement and made a stand,” he said. Things started to change after that, he said. “The public purse is very important.” About eight months before Nelson became President, Ndaba Mandela was visited by a man in a suit, who came to his home in a BMW, he said. When the man said he was sent by his grandfather to get him, Mandela refused. “In the back of my mind I’m saying ‘stranger danger,’” he said. Eventually, the man left. But when he told his father, he said that if the man returns, he should go with him. The man did return, and Mandela was taken to a house in Northern Johannesburg, guarded by cops and “guys in suits with earpieces,” he said. While there he met a chef “the size of the house,” Mandela said. “It’s a good thing … As you know, you must never trust a skinny chef.” Nelson told Ndaba he was sending Ndaba’s father to university and would take care of Ndaba. His father went to university for the first time at 45 years old, graduated at 50, and died at 55 from HIV/AIDS, Mandela said. His mother also died of HIV/AIDS. The disease ravaged the nation and created “child headed households,” he said. This meant teenagers taking care of their younger siblings and running the house. The family discussed how they would say their loved ones died, he said. There was the argument to say pneumonia or tuberculosis because HIV/AIDS technically just weakens the immune system, Mandela said. But Nelson refused that idea. “We shall simply say that the life of my son was taken by HIV/AIDS,” Ndaba Mandela said his grandfather said. This led to HIV/AIDS being treated more like any other disease, he said. Because of the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS “people would die in silence, people would die in isolation,” Mandela said. When the first antiretroviral medicine was available, their president at the time refused it, he said. “He could have saved many lives had he allowed the antiretrovirals to come in.” By treating HIV/AIDS as any other disease, they helped other families tackle the stigma, he added. Nelson once told his grandson that because he’s related to him, people will look to him as a leader, Ndaba Mandela said. Because of that, he was expected to get the best grades. “The pressure, ladies and gentleman, the pressure!” Mandela said. Having pressure from parents is actually a good thing, he added. “Your parents want you to shine brighter than you think you can shine. “Even the parents get pressure at work. They know by a certain date that presentation better be ready. Otherwise, it’s your butts on the line,” Mandela said. He discussed how to decide what cause to fight for. “Let me tell you which cause to take up. You know which one? The one that you’re passionate about, the one that talks to your heart,” he said. When someone sees something that doesn’t sit well with them in their community, that’s a good place to start, he added. “Because along the way, you will come across speed bumps and hurdles and people will say, ‘Ah, you’re just a dreamer.’ But guess what, ladies and gentlemen? It starts with a dream,” Mandela said. Love for their job makes the best doctors, lawyers, and presidents, he said. They stop seeing their job as work, and start seeing it as “an extension of who they are.” Being a leader starts in one’s community, he said. “To be a leader is to serve your community. It’s about standing up for those who can’t stand for themselves, and being a voice for those who are marginalized in our community,” Mandela said. When someone serves their community, the first thing they do is talk to those who need help and listen, he added. He said he’s at this event to encourage young people to dream big. “If your dreams don’t scare you, you are not dreaming big enough,” Mandela said. He agreed with MLK that the most important question to ask oneself is “What are we doing for others?” On Martin Luther King Jr. Day people give service to their community, and that is similar to Mandela Day, which is on July 18, Mandela said. Because Nelson dedicated 67 years of his life to community service and social justice, Ndaba said everyone should dedicate 67 minutes of their day to community service every Mandela Day. “The beautiful thing is that when you choose that 67 minutes, you get to engage with someone that you wouldn’t usually engage with, you get to hear different stories that you wouldn’t actually care about,” Mandela said. That 67 minutes grows to half a day, which grows to a full day, he added. “And we say, ‘Make every day a Mandela Day.’” It is not always about money, he said. Some prefer to give money, but time is just as important as money, if not more so. Consider being a mentor for one hour a week, he said. That adds to four hours a month, which can help someone who needs help feel heard. With the way everything seems to be going, “We have to stand up taller than we’ve ever stood up before. Now we have to make our voices be heard and shout louder than we’ve ever shouted before,” Mandela said. Most people attending the event had social media, and each of those people had different feeds, he said. Each person is in the same room, yet has experienced a different reality. With large media companies buying up small family run ones, where does the news come from, he asked. Who is reporting on the issues big companies don’t report on? Despite this, people must not be afraid, Mandela said. “Let us understand that we also have the power, but our power comes when we work together.” While he wants to encourage young people to dream big, he also wants them to consider smaller ways to contribute, he said. Dream about becoming a president, but don’t forget about being a mayor, or being on the mayor’s council, Mandela said. “Because guess what? They control budgets. I’m talking about the education budgets. I’m talking about the housing budgets, right? I’m talking about the homeless budgets. Who are we feeding today?” Mandela said. Within one’s community is where they provide their best service, he added. Mandela wrote a book titled “Going to the Mountain: Life Lessons from My Grandfather, Nelson Mandela.” He shared a lesson from the book with the audience. The tallest tree has more responsibility than the other trees, because it makes sure the other trees get enough sunlight, water, and room for roots, he said. The tall tree is privileged, and it has responsibility to help those who are not privileged. Everyone attending the event has privilege, because someone having privilege means that the person doesn’t have to worry about where their next meal is coming from, and where they’re going to sleep, he said. Everyone there has a responsibility to help others. He agreed with Coretta Scott King that freedom is never really won, but instead has to be continuously won again and again. “She also said, great Coretta Scott King, that struggle is a never ending process. Freedom is never really won. You have to earn it and win it in every generation,” Mandela said. MLK and Nelson fought against the same struggle in different countries and different continents, Ndaba Mandela said. MLK said the only thing that matters is “What are you doing for others?” according to Mandela. Nelson said, “It does not matter how many millions you have made. The real question is, how many millionaires have you created?” Ndaba Mandela said. “I’m giving you another task. Whenever the ugly head of bigotry, racism returns, just give it a karate chop, please. Karate chop in the neck,” Mandela said.