During his lifetime, former South African President Nelson touched the city of Los Angeles, as evidenced by the outpouring of support that has flowed freely since the liberator passed away on Dec. 5 at the age of 95.

Mayor Eric Garcetti signs the condolence book for the family of Nelson Mandela at South African Consul General Cyril Ndaba’s home. (photo by Aaron Blevins)

Since his death, city, county and state officials, as well as members of the community, have mourned Mandela, who inspired individuals from all walks of life due to his ability to turn enemies and adversaries into friends and partners, Mayor Eric Garcetti said.

“[That is] certainly a lesson that Los Angeles and the rest of the country need to know as well,” he said.

On Monday, Garcetti visited the residence of South African Consul General Cyril Ndaba to sign a condolence book that will eventually be sent to South Africa. Residents have until Friday to add their sentiments to the record.

Garcetti said he has visited South Africa a few times, and met Mandela in 1999 as a human rights activist with the Rockefeller Foundation. He said he was able to witness Mandela’s work first hand, and view the beginnings of an “incredible new chapter” in South African history.

“Los Angeles couldn’t be, in some ways, closer tied to South Africa during the apartheid struggle,” Garcetti said. “Los Angeles took a very active role [in its opposition].”

He said Mayor Tom Bradley and the Los Angeles City Council were among the first to adopt resolutions against apartheid, a system of segregation that was in place from 1948 to 1994. The city refused to do business with companies in South Africa until after apartheid ended, Garcetti said.

“I think we’ve always had a strong tie. We’re two very global cities, very diverse cities. Between [Johannesburg] and Cape Town and Los Angeles, we feel a lot of familiarity,” he said, adding that many South African natives reside in L.A. “We feel like an honorary Angeleno has passed in the city of Angels — perhaps the greatest angel of our time.”

Johan Klopper, consul political, spoke on behalf of Ndaba, who was out of the country. Klopper said consul general’s office appreciates the support from Los Angeles during apartheid and during its moment of loss.

“We are all certainly shocked,” he said. “It’s a very sad occasion. But on the other hand, he had a very full life of ninety-five years. He achieved a lot. …He’s in a better place. We all know that.”

Born as Rolihlahla Mandela in Mvezo, Transkei, on July 18, 1918, Mandela became increasingly involved in politics in 1942 and later joined the African National Congress (ANC) in 1944, when he helped form the ANC Youth League, according to his foundation.

Quickly rising up the ranks of the youth league, in 1952 Mandela was chosen as the national volunteer-in-chief of the Defiance Campaign, which called for civil disobedience against six unjust laws. He and 19 other people were charged under the Suppression of Communism Act and “sentenced to nine months hard labor suspended for two years,” according to the foundation.

He was again arrested, along with 156 other activists in December 1955, but was acquitted in the treason trial in 1956.

In 1960, police killed 69 unarmed people during a protest against the country’s laws, which led to a ban against the ANC. Mandela was among thousands detained during the state of emergency.

He was asked to lead an armed struggle and helped establish Spear of the Nation in 1961. One year later, he left South Africa secretly to drum up support for the armed struggle, but was arrested in a police roadblock. Mandela was charged with leaving the country illegally and inciting workers to strike. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

In 1963, he joined nine others on trial for sabotage and faced the death penalty in a case known as the Rivonia Trial. His words to the court in October 1963 have since been immortalized.

“I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination,” Mandela said. “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964, but later initiated talks about an ultimate meeting between the apartheid government and the ANC. Mandela refused three conditional offers of release during his imprisonment, but was finally released in 1990.

“I think when he emerged from prison … he emerged with a smile and light that unified a nation and allowed it to write the next chapter in its history,” Garcetti said, adding that many people expected him to be “angry and full of darkness.”

Mandela “immersed himself” in official talks to end white minority rule and was elected president of the ANC in 1991. In 1993, Mandela and President F.W. de Klerk jointly won the Nobel Peace Prize for their roles in ending apartheid. He became the country’s first democratically elected president in 1994, stepping down in 1999.

“President Mandela’s struggle and sacrifice taught us that injustice and oppression must be extinguished no matter where it may exist and that protest, dialogue, forgiveness and reconciliation are fundamental and necessary to ourselves and society,” U.S. Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) said in a statement. She could not be reached for comment by deadline, as she was returning from Mandela’s memorial.

Bass, who serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Africa, said Mandela’s fight for freedom was a personal inspiration for her.

“I joined countless other Americans in fighting for his freedom and for ending apartheid in South Africa,” she said. “During the twenty-seven years he spent imprisoned on Robben Island, he never lost hope and never lost his humanity. I visited Robben Island and saw the eight-by-seven-foot cell he lived in. In the 1970s and 1980s, President Mandela’s example taught me that although the struggle for social and economic justice might take many years, it was my responsibility to continue that fight, and if he could keep his focus on these values, then I certainly can also.”