“He showed all mankind that there is always hope”
By Kevin Woodhouse
After hearing about the passing of Nelson Mandela last week, Dollard des Ormeaux councilor and West Island Blues Festival co-founder Errol Johnson found himself “watching the television tributes to this great man and thinking about the difficult challenge he faced being in prison for 27 years.”
But what really amazed Johnson about Mandela was the former leader of South Africa’s ability “to forgive his tormentors and use love to bring people together instead of hate for
revenge,” Johnson told The Suburban.
“He taught us that despite the challenges we face, love is stronger than hate. Mandela was able to overcome apartheid in South Africa and teach us that we can live together peacefully despite our differences,” said Johnson.
“No matter your race, religion or creed, we can all learn from his powerful lesson of forgiveness because instead of coming out of jail with hate in his heart, there was love,” the DDO councilor said.
Johnson believes that Mandela’s legacy will live on indefinitely as a perfect example of what one person can accomplish. “We got to see this in our lifetime of such a great person making such a large contribution to the world,” said Johnson. “He showed all mankind that there is always hope and let’s hope the world remembers that it is always better to be positive in life.”