The Legacies of Nelson Mandela: Ten Years On
Tuesday 5 December 2023, 5:30pm
The Buttery, Wolfson College
Free event
Join us for a very special event to celebrate the launch of the second edition of OCLW Co-Director Elleke Boehmer's Nelson Mandela: A Very Short Introduction.
Elleke will discuss the legacies of Nelson Mandela on the 10th anniversary of his death, in conversation with Tinashe Mushakavanhu (St Anne's) and Jonny Steinberg (Winnie and Nelson), chaired by Maxim Bolt, Associate Professor of Development Studies (St Anne's).
A pathbreaking analysis of the relationship between Mandela the myth, and Mandela the historical figure, looking at the way images, stories, and politics have been combined to create the iconic image of Mandela that we know today. Boehmer explores the long trajectory of Mandela's life, explaining first the historical and political context of the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, and then the post-apartheid period of difficult reconciliation, including the shifts and changes in Mandela's reputation since the millennium. This innovative postcolonial reflection takes on board the more critical revisionist literature on Mandela that has emerged since 2015, looking at responses to his death in 2013, and the 2018 commemorations of the 100th anniversary of his birth. This edition extends the focus of the first edition with a critical look at meanings of reconciliation and Mandela's ethic of reciprocity.
