Nelson Mandela

For decades Bill Cosby was not only an American icon but a global one. In apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, “The Cosby Show” was in fact the most popular TV program among white South Africans.

American cops rarely go to jail for the killings of civilians, and the same goes for police officers in South Africa. And in both countries, the anger at such perceived biases is at odds with the perception that they’ve become post-racial societies after electing black leaders.

You can see the phrase scrawled on walls around the globe from Tahrir Square to Ferguson, seemingly anywhere people take to the streets: “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.” It was the creation of American jazz poet Gil Scott-Heron, whose biographer says he’d enjoy the term’s enduring use.

When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990, Zelda la Grange had no idea who he was. In her Afrikaaner family, he was simply a “terrorist.” She was in her twenties and would soon become Mandela’s personal assistant, and later, a close friend.When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990, Zelda la Grange had no idea who he was. In her Afrikaaner family, he was simply a “terrorist.” She was in her twenties and would soon become Mandela’s personal assistant, and later, a close friend.