The Spear has fallen, broken, rusted, lost. . .

There was a time, not so far in the past but far, far away from memory, when the refrain "pick up the spear has fallen!" would have reverberated around and defined the mood at FNB stadium. In truth, the spear fell a long, long time ago and was not, as required, picked up. It is lying, probably broken or rusted, somewhere between the release of Nelson Mandela and the conclusion of CODESA II. It has, sadly, been downhill ever since. Of course there is another view: that the spear was picked up and that it continues to pierce the way forward for South Africa and for Black South Africans in all their glorious shades and hues. 

Today, there's no chants of "pick up the spear has fallen". Today there are boos and cheers, song and dance and tears and smiles. Today we celebrate a life lived and cherished by many. Today is about reflection, recognition and understanding. Reflecting on the time Mandela was active in South African political history. The time interrupted by some 27 years. The time rebooted in 1990 and shut down in 1999. A short time in the history of the struggle for a free and equal struggle. It is time to recognize the contribution of Nelson Mandela to emergence of the South Africa we know today. From the instruction he issued to Umkhonto we Sizwe to defend Shell House, the headquarters of the ANC, as it then was. To defend it against the attack by Inkatha. To the decision to disband Umkhonto we Sizwe. 

Throughout his political life, Nelson Mandela remained, in his own words, a disciplined member of the ANC. In this capacity he champion the cause of non-racialism, justice and peace. Contradictory as these may sometimes be. For the ANC and for Nelson Mandela personally, these were not up for discussion. He declared "I have fought against white domination. I have fought against black domination. . ." The fight against white domination seems to have ended with the election of Nelson Mandela as president of the Republic of South Africa. That I believe was the beginning of the fight against black domination. He may have been the face and embodiment of the struggle against Apartheid but he was so as member of the collective thatch is the African National Congress. A collective he would never cross or be against. Always a disciplined cadre of the ANC. 

Nelson Mandela is not by any means unique in any of the attributes for which he is revered around the world. These attributes are in fact the stuff Blackness is made of.