4 The Defiance Campaign

Chapter 4 The Defiance Campaign In 1950, Nelson was elected president of the Youth League. In 1952 the ANC sent a letter to the prime minister saying that since all the ANC complaints had fallen on deaf ears, they were going to take action. Unless the government repealed—or struck down— the laws of apartheid by February 29, there would be a campaign of defiance. In other words, black people would refuse to obey the apartheid laws.

This time the ANC's complaints were not ignored. They were rejected. The government warned that anyone breaking the law would be severely punished.

They might be arrested or forced to pay a big fine. Some people were beaten. Nelson led the protest anyway, raising funds and rounding up volunteers to break the laws of apartheid peacefully. For example, some were to sit on whites-only benches or stand in whites-only lines. Nelson traveled all around the province speaking to workers and villagers, encouraging them to fight for their rights. They came to respect the man they called Mandela. The Defiance Campaign, as this protest was called, would be peaceful. No matter what the government did to them, the protesters would not react with violence. They might be hurt, Mandela warned, but they must control their anger and fear. If they attacked, the government would easily crush them.

It was illegal to encourage anyone to break apartheid laws. However, Nelson and other ANC members recruited over 8,500 volunteers. Many wore armbands in green, gold, and black, the colors of the ANC: green for the land, gold for its riches, and black for the people. PASSIVE RESISTANCE

"PASSIVE RESISTANCE" IS WHEN PEOPLE PEACEFULLY BREAK UNFAIR LAWS. THE AIM OF PASSIVE RESISTANCE IS TO END INJUSTICE BY REFUSING TO OBEY UNJUST LAWS. IT WAS EFFECTIVELY USED BY INDIAN LEADER MAHATMA GANDHI IN HIS STRUGGLE FOR INDIAN INDEPENDENCE FROM THE BRITISH IN THE 1920S, 1930S, AND 1940S. IT WAS ALSO USED IN THE

1950S AND 1960S BY CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS IN THE US LIKE DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. TO WIN EQUALITY FOR BLACKS. FOR EXAMPLE, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS WOULD SIT AT LUNCH COUNTERS THAT WERE FOR WHITES ONLY. THEY'D SIT EVEN THOUGH NO ONE WOULD SERVE THEM. THEY'D SIT UNTIL POLICE CAME AND DRAGGED THEM AWAY, SOMETIMES TO JAIL. PEACEFUL RESISTANCE CAN BE A VERY POWERFUL WAY TO CHANGE UNJUST LAWS. THE SIGHT OF PEOPLE BEING ARRESTED AND ATTACKED JUST BECAUSE THEY WANT EQUALITY CAN TURN PUBLIC OPINION IN THEIR FAVOR. Other countries took notice and admired the courage of the protesters. But the South African