and a nationalist was the election of 1948. This election pitted the United Party, which was in power at the time, against the National Party (Mandela 96). Although the United Party did not treat the blacks particularly well, they were rather mild compared to the National Party (96-97). The platform of the National Party was the idea, and programs of apartheid, which was discussed earlier in the paper. The main ideology held by the Nationalist Party was that blacks were inferior to whites, and that the white man should always have control over blacks (97). Eventually, the Nationalist Party, led by Dr. Daniel Malan, won the election of 1948, and this came as a great shock to the entire country (97). One would expect the black South Africans to be devastated by this outcome; however they were not. After hearing news of the election, Mandela's partner Oliver Tambo said, "I like this. Now we will know exactly who our enemies are and where we stand" (Mandela 97). Put differently, the new threat from the state allowed for the ANC to become more united on the ideal that some drastic new actions had to be taken (99). So by looking at the implications of the results of the election of 1948, we can see how it led to further understanding that more nationalist/activist actions had to be taken by Mandela and the ANC.Now that the laws Mandela faced, tactics he used, and his nationalist influences have been discussed, one must now analyze what kind of an impact Nelson Mandela had on his people and the world. Nelson Mandela spent twenty-seven years of his life in prison. After Mandela was released, the people of South Africa let him know what kind of impact he had on them in a rally on February 11, 1990 (PolyGram Video). The masses expressed what Mandela had meant to them in a song entitled, "Father of our Nation" (PolyGram Video). Some of the lyrics of the song are, "You shaped our destiny, for many years we waited for you. Oh Mandela...
