Mandela , Compromise, Inclusivity, and Democracy
My uncle and aunt worked for the US Federal Government in Washington DC, and practically every year my family would make a visit to their home as we would spend the holiday together. These were some of the most memorable occasions, the laughing, sharing, bonding and game playing that makes for One year I will never forget sitting in our living room and this particular year there was serious dialogue hearing my family (with origins in Texas and Oklahoma) recount some of the firsthand accounts of the pain and consequences they endured associated with racism: the familial ties to slavery and the systemic structures which accompanied both. As the conversation grew more and more intense, some of the younger relatives in the family asked, was there any hope, would there be progress, could these societal atrocities be overcome, I remember like yesterday one of my cousins said, “If Mandela can, we can too”.This was my first introduction to Nelson Mandela.
My second Mandela experience was back at home in New York City, during his historic post-apartheid release visit. I remember the streets of Brooklyn were lined with crowds clamoring on every block of the anticipated parade route, feverishly chanting, and people looking down from high-story buildings hoping to get a glimpse and a glance of this giant named Mandela. He would later travel right in the backyard, as we lived near Yankee Stadium, and all I could remember was how every street was shut down. For the first time, I saw what an international icon looked like as he and his then wife Winnie Mandela journeyed to New York. As I think about that celebration, I now have a deeper understanding, appreciation, and anticipation for our journey to South Africa.
As I look through a leadership lens, I found there were a couple of themes that stuck out in conjunction with our readings, Anatomy of A Miracle, by Patti Waldmeir, and After Mandela by Alec Russell:
Compromise
As I think about our upcoming journey to and our visit to the place where Mandela was jailed and released, I am struck by the amount of compromise it took to achieve his release, even up until the last minute. Mandela knew de Klerk’s international image would suffer irreparable harm if he failed to release his prisoner as announced: de Klerk agreed the ANC leader could be released in Cape Town and make his own way to Johannesburg. [1]
Leadership and compromise hold a paradoxical space in organizational life. From a positive perspective, compromise can be an instrument of adaptive leadership. Mandela’s negotiation strategy during South Africa’s transition exemplifies how principled compromise can foster collective ownership of change.
Russell’s critique of post-Mandela leadership underscores the danger of compromise. When compromise morphs into appeasing or transactional bargaining, it can potentially weaken institutions and enable corruption. In assessing the negligence of Mandela’s successor Thabo Mbeki AIDS activists argued that Mbeki was responsible for more unnecessary deaths than apartheid. [2]
As Mandela and de Klerk reached a compromise on his release from prison, Russell shares how that word took on a different meaning and a life of its own after a Mandela presidency. Corruption, political violence, and patronage politics would later abound, and my leadership takeaway is that compromise is good at times, but how, when, and why should consistently be examined.
Inclusivity
Reading Waldmeir and Russell, you can discover a layered way of viewing democracy. One tends to view democracy as a finished product, but both books highlight democracy’s evolving process.
What also resonates with me is the objective of Inclusive governance over civil war. DEI has become a worn-out term over the past several months in America, as many organizations, businesses, and schools capitulated to neither mentioning nor applying any form of inclusion in fear of reprisal. Inclusive governance ensures that diverse voices are represented in decision making.
This type of governance creates systems that will reflect the needs of the whole society rather than a privileged few, as evidenced in Mandela’s ongoing fight with de Klerk over his exclusionary efforts. By then, Mandela was fed up with DeKlerk accusing him of fighting for white jobs and privilege not for the public good [3]
By engaging marginalized groups, trust can be formed between the public and institutions. This strengthens the legitimacy of government, and where cohesion prospers, conflict can be better reduced. Economically, inclusivity has been proven to lead to sustainable growth. Just as Mandela called out de Klerk, an inclusivity mindset safeguards democracy by holding leaders accountable and preventing power from being concentrated in narrow elites. Ultimately, inclusive governance transforms diversity into a strength for collective progress. This, in fact, makes democracy a miracle of possibility.
Conclusion
Looking through this lens today, a message can be conveyed about the dangers of complacency and the need to remain vigilant. Democracy cannot be accomplished from afar. There are many activists who are fighting authentically for justice, and this fight warrants vigilance and accountability. As we journey to Cape Town and see some of the areas where Mandela made history, these things would not have been accomplished without either.
As we prepare to walk the streets of Cape Town, we do so not only as observers of history but also as leaders, shapers of destiny. Our journey provides the opportunity to embody these lessons, carrying them forward into our own leadership practices.
[1] Patti Waldmeir, Anatomy of a Miracle: The End of Apartheid and the Birth of the New South Africa, 1st ed (W.W. Norton & Co, 1997).
[2] Russell, Alec, ed. After Mandela: The Battle for the Soul of South Africa. Windmill books, 2010. 204.
[3] Waldmeir, 224.
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