Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 in a village in South Africa and he is still living today. Mandela opened the first black law firm in South Africa. In 1944,Nelson Mandela joined the African National Congress because he wanted to fight for the rights of black people in South Africa. He became a leader there and was accused of treason and put in prison for over 27 years. He kept working for his people even from prison. He was finally released in 1990. Nelson Mandela received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 and in1994 he became the first president of South Africa.