I Am Prepared to Die

Apartheid (Afrikaans for "separateness") is the racially segregated form of government that operated in South Africa from 1948 to 1994. The apartheid government's laws and policies heavily favored the country’s white minority, and the National Party focused its resources on advancing Afrikaans language and culture while exploiting and impoverishing the country's Indigenous Black majority. 

In his speech, Mandela refers to the Pass Laws. These apartheid laws required every Black South African to carry what was called a “dompas”—a word that translates from Afrikaans as a “stupid pass.” The pass requirement gave the police a pretext to harass and arrest many Black South Africans—forcing them to live in constant danger and under constant surveillance. Mandela also describes the inequality in education created by the Bantu Education Act, which prescribed racially segregated educational facilities as a matter of law (“Bantu Education and Racist Compartmentalizing of Education.” South African History Online, 27 Aug. 2019).

Mandela’s speech is in direct opposition to the apartheid government, who sentenced him to life in prison for his political opposition. Mandela is charged for sabotage against the government. However, in this speech, he also references previous instances in which the government tried to imprison him for life. He mentions that, in 1956, 156 members of his party, including himself, were arrested for the Suppression of Communism Act. Despite its name, this apartheid law in fact sought to suppress all political dissent against the apartheid regime by linking it with the supposed menace of communism. Throughout the speech, Mandela emphasizes his political independence—he works on behalf of all South Africans, not on behalf of any external ideology. The practice of sending political prisoners like Mandela to the isolated Robben Island prison makes clear that the apartheid government’s intention was to intimidate and silence all opposition.

Mandela also mentions the Sharpeville massacre that took place in 1960, when a protest against the Pass Laws led to police violence that killed 69 people. Mandela mentions many other protests that turned fatal due to police aggression. Mandela also cites statistics to illustrate the stark contrasts in living conditions between Black and white South Africans.

Mandela engaged in the freedom struggle through the ANC and Umkhonto. Both of these organizations were banned by the apartheid government, and any involvement was punishable by imprisonment. This was another tactic that the government used to ward off dissent, and many members in these parties were forced to flee the country. Engaging in the struggle became a matter of life and death. This is not only evident in Mandela’s example of a state massacre and his references to the death penalty, but also the deaths of freedom fighters such as Steve Biko, who was tortured and killed in police custody during interrogations (“Biko’s imprisonment, death and the aftermath.” South African History Online, 27 Aug. 2019).

It is important to note that Mandela was the key figure in negotiating the end of Apartheid and the transition to a peaceful democracy. His election as the first democratic president of South Africa, in 1994, signaled the end of Apartheid.