10 Quotes by Nelson Mandela That Will Inspire You to Live, Love, and Act
You need to read those words today more than ever.
A little over two years ago, I spent a Saturday morning at the famous Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. They were featuring an exhibition entitled ‘Good Hope: South Africa and The Netherlands from 1600.’
One of the rooms had its walls covered with signs that read ‘whites-only’ and ‘non-whites only’. And in the center of the room, there was a bench that was marked with a stamp to display the race it was reserved for.
This bench, along with the signs, were taken from South Africa’s pre-1994 Apartheid policy — an enforced system to segregate the races. On the basis of skin color, laws determined where you may sit, shop, or eat, which restrooms you can use, which elevators you can step into, which hospitals you’re allowed to be treated at, and which schools your children can attend.
What blew my mind was that such human discrimination was still paramount in some countries less than 25 years ago. It reminded me of how little I knew about the world, and how much more there is for me to learn.
Later that afternoon, as I roamed around the canals of Amsterdam, I came to a pause. At the end of a narrow street, right in front of me, was a bench. On it sat…
