# Quote — Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom

> I explained to the crowd that my voice was hoarse from a cold and that my physician had advised me not to attend. "I hope that you will not disclose to him that I have violated his instructions," I told them. I congratulated Mr. de Klerk for his strong showing. I thanked all those in the ANC and the democratic movement who had worked so hard for so long. Mrs. Coretta Scott King, the wife of the great freedom fighter Martin Luther King Jr., was on the podium that night, and I looked over to her as I made reference to her husband's immortal words.
>
> "This is one of the most important moments in the life of our country. I stand here before you filled with deep pride and joy--pride in the ordinary, humble people of this country. You have shown such a calm, patient determination to reclaim this country as your own, and now the joy that we can loudly proclaim from the rooftops — Free at last! Free at last! I stand before you humbled by your courage, with a heart full of love for all of you."

- Author: [Nelson Mandela](https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela.md)
- Book: [Long Walk to Freedom](https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela/long-walk-to-freedom.md)
- Source: [Wikiquote](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela#Long_Walk_to_Freedom_(1995)) ([CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/))
- Quote page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela/long-walk-to-freedom/i-explained-to-the

## More from this book

> If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela/long-walk-to-freedom/if-you-want.md)

> No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela/long-walk-to-freedom/no-one-is-born.md)

> The authorities liked to say that we received a balanced diet; it was indeed balanced — between the unpalatable and the inedible.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/nelson-mandela/long-walk-to-freedom/the-authorities-liked.md)