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Mandela and the Jews

(Jerusalem Post) David Saks - With the life of South Africa's former president Nelson Mandela drawing to a close, it should be recalled that many Jewish individuals played a valuable part in his life and career. After his arrival in Johannesburg in the early 1940s, it was Lazer Sidelsky that gave him his start as an articled clerk in his law firm at a time when it was unheard of for young blacks to be taken on in such a capacity. Mandela went on to study law at the University of the Witwatersrand, where he established enduring friendships with fellow students Jules Browde and Harry Schwarz. Thirteen of his fellow defendants in the 1956-1961 Treason Trial were Jews, among them Lionel Bernstein, Joe Slovo and Ruth First. Among the founders of the underground military wing of the African National Congress were Dennis Goldberg, Harold Wolpe and Arthur Goldreich. Jewish lawyers were prominently involved in defending Mandela in various political trials, among them Isie Maisels, Arthur Chaskalson, Joel Joffe and Sidney Kentridge. The writer is associate director of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies and author of Jewish Memories of Mandela (2011).
2013-07-05 00:00:00
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