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‘Higher Than Hope: The
Biography of Nelson Mandela
By Fatima Meer
Nelson Mandela’s release or
February 11, after 27 years o'
imprisonment in South Africa
was one of the most eagwl]
anticipated and joyfullj
celebrated events of our time.
Mandela, the leader of the
.\frican National Congress, has
attained the status of legend
vithin his own lifetime, and
■vorld looks to him to lead
South Africa in its difficult
transition towards government
after apartheid. He has been the
. iect of praise of virtually
•ty world leader, and figures
diverse as Pope John Paul H,
: Richard Attenborough,
levie Wonder and Mike Tyson
fflve eulogized him. Yet while
'tmdela, the legend, and his
nessage are well-known, the
raan behind them is not
Fatima Meer’s Higher Than
•fr.pe: The Biography of
Ison Klandela (Harper &
w, March 9, 1990, $19.95)
:?s first published in South
iirica in 1988, immediately
old out its first printing, and
vas subsequently banned. It is a
iramatic and intimate portrait
cf Mandela, written by a close
friend of the family. Professor
Meer, a prominent and
outspoken critic of apartheid in
ner own right, and no stranger
to arrests, harassment and
mannings, was invited to write
this biography by Mandela
himself. In researching Higher
Than Hope, Professor Meer
had uninecedented, exclusive
access to Mandela, his
cooespoodence, his family and
close associates in the ANC.
Mandela himself carefully
examined, approved and
authorized the manuscript
Wiimie Mandela writes in hei
.foreword to Higher Than
Hope, "There was no better'
person (f« Nelson’s biography)
than Fatima Meer....Not only
did Mandela request Fatima to
undertake this tt^, he wrote to
her an asked me to pursue her
to get down to it and I did"
Higher Than Hope is a
(compassionately written
account of a man who, more
than almost anyone, can claim
to have made African history.
Working within certain
limitations — the greatest being
the difficulty of making contact
widi Mandela qtem a total
of 18 hours widi him at Victcx’
Verster prison) — Professor
Meer nevertheless paints an
impressive portraiL Mandela
himself, on reading the
mamscr^ wrote that she had
done "a mweloos job for
which the family will remain
very grateful."
* * *
The picture Professor
Meer presents is that of an
ordinary human being with
natural emotions and
desires and not an ancient
myth which often provokes
the tiresome questions:
"Why do children who were
not yet born when Mandela
was jailed eulogize this
man?" "Do you think the
youth of the land really
want a man they do not
know to lead them if he is
released?"
- Winnie Mandela
In the wake of Mandela’s
release, a book such as Higher
Than Hope becomes even
more important. Meer vividly
transforms the figure of myth
into an ordinary man who
abandons a successful career as
an attorney to give his all for
the Cause. From Transkei
region of Mandela’s birth, to
Johannesburg, to his
underground travels through
Africa and to England, Meer’s
narrative mixes the political and
the personal in Mandela’s life,
giving us the picture of a fully
rounded human being. Mandela
granted Meer the copyright to
his prison correspondence, and
these letters — divided into
headings such as "Winnie,"
"Sons," "Daughters,"
"JCinsfolk," "Regrets, Nostalgia,
Dreams," "House and Land" —
add a still more personal voice.
HIGHER THAN HOPE
traces Mandela’s rise in the
ANC and his evolving political
beliefs in the face of increasing
repression by the South African
government. From Mandela’s
joining the ANC in 1944,
through his Defiance Campaign
and the work stoppage he
(xchestrated in the 1950s, to his
eventual acceptance of the need
for armed, struggle in the wake
of the Shaipeville massacre and
the State of Emergency in the
early 1960s — HIGHER
THAN HOPE presents with
authority and insight the
alliances, key players, and
histcxical background necessary,
to understand this cruciiU
chapter in South African
hist^. Meer covers in great
detail the Rivonia Trial, in
which Mandela and dozens of
others were sentenced to fife fori
"attempting to overthrow the.
state," and reproduces large
segments of Mandela’sj
passionate Statement From the!
Dodt, an articulate defense of'
the ANC, of himself, and of his
pwple which proved to be
essential in the formation of his
larger-than-life persona:
During my lifetime I hare
dedicated my life to this
struggle of the African
people. I have fought
against white domination,
and I have fought against
black domination. I have
cherished the ideal of a
democratic and free society
in which all persons live
together in harmony with
equal opportunities. It is an
ideal which I hope to live
for, and to see realized. But
my lord, if needs be, it is an
ideal for which / am
prepared to die.
One of the most striking
commentaries on Mandela’s
stature and importance appears
in the author’s Preface to
HIGHER THAN HOPE. Meer
traveled to the cottage at Victor
Verster prison where Mandela
had been moved since his battle
with tuberculosis in 1988. With
its swimming pool and
television room, the isolated but
comfortable prison compound
was a far cry from Mandela’s
hard labor days at Robben
Island, the site of his original
incarceration. During thW visit,
Meer saw something odd in the
behavior of the prison staff,
puzzled over it, and finally
realized;
As we talked and saw Bu
deference shown him by the
guards, it dawned on me
that it was not only South
Africa’s disenfranchised
who saw their hopes
reflected in him, but that
the government too was
hoping to resolve its
problems through him.
Nelson Mandela is, quite
simply, one of the greatest
living figures of our time.
HIGHER THAN HOPE is a
unique tribute to and essential
biography of the great man. It is
also a perceptive commentary
on the situation in South Africa
It is a document that no one
concerned with politics or
hiimanitv can afford to miss.
PRINCE
Riveting Musical
Performances Rock New
Prince Film
thuWuirt national flower
is the leek—a vegetable
that closely resembles the
onion.
MINNEAPOLIS —
Production on PRINCE’S fourth
major motion picture, a new
wave "Hollywood" musical
with a contemporary urban
slant, began last month and
continued through March. The
Minneapolis-based artist is
directing, scoring and starring
in "Graffiti Bridge," which also
stars "Purple Rain" pals Morris
E. Day and Jerome Benton. The
film is introducing the
intriguing and sexy newcomer
Ingrid Chavez.
Leaked reports from the set
of "Graffiti Bridge" have
already caused a buzz
throughout the entertainment
industry. With the use of an
eclectic mix of choreography by
Otis Sallid, an intensely
dramatic use of cinematography
and a host of sizzling musici
performances, industry insiders
are already speculating that the
film will be one of the
summer’s hottest attractions.
The film features Prince as
The Kid (resurrected from
"Purple Rain") and Morris E.
Day as rivals in a power
struggle over the direction of
the Glam Slam, a nightclub they
co-own. Left to them in a
friend’s will, the Glam Slam is
all that the two young men have
in common. Money rules the
sleazy world of Morris E. Day
while The Kid is driven by a
deeper force expressed through ■
the powerful energy and raw
beauty of his music.
Some of the film’s hottest
footage is sure to be the on
screen reunion of one of the
world’s ’coolest’ bands. Joining
lead singer Morris Day and his
sidekick Jerome Benton.are the
rest of the original Time
bandmembers — Jimmy Jam,
Terry Lewis, Jesse Johnson,
Jellybean Johnson and Monte
Moir.
"Graffiti Bridge" examines
the power of love, h(^ and
faith. The film’s characters are
frequently confronted with the
dilemma of choosing integirity
in a world where greed and
corruption seem more readily
rewarded. Combining elements
of magical fantasy with reality,
the film is an inspiring, upbeat
look at the challenge of
following dreams and the
struggle involved with being
teue to one’s self.
In addition to riveting
performances by Prince’s
electrifying band, the film
feaUires appearances by funk’s
‘Founding Father’ George
Clinton and ‘Gospel Maven’
Mavis Staples, who portray
nightclub managers. Thirteen-
year-old Tevin Campbell (who
sings two tracks on Quincy
Jones’ current release, "Back.
On the Block") plays Strqtles’
son.
Other Paisley Park Records
artists spearing in the film are
Jill Jones and rappers Robin
Power and T.C. Mis.