Bram Fischer: Afrikaner Revolutionary (mayibuye History & Literature Series, No. 86.)
Tags: Stephen Clingman

A history of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa focusing on the white man who led the defense of Mandela in the Rivonia Trial in 1964. The story begins in the 1850s. Clingman (English, U. of Massachusetts in Amherst) narrates the history of the divided state, slowing down for emphasis when Fischer (1908-1975) enters the scene and detailing his impact on South Africa's transition to democracy. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, OrIn 1964 Bram Fischer led the defence of Nelson Mandela in the Rivonia Trial. In 1966 Fischer was himself sentenced to life imprisonment in South Africa for his political activities against the policies of apartheid. Before his sentencing he had spent nine months underground, in disguise, evading a nationwide manhunt. He was South Africa's most wanted man, his cause recognised and celebrated around the world. What had brought him to these circumstances? And what led to his untimely death after nine years in prison? This biography follows a fascinating journey of conscience and personal transformation. Fischer was born into one of the most prominent Afrikaner nationalist families, yet came to understand that to be a South African in the fullest sense he had to identify with all of South Africa's people. A Rhodes Scholar and distinguished lawyer, endowed with gifts of intelligence, charisma, and integrity, he abandoned the temptations of power and prestige to ensure human rights and justice for all. Drawn to communism in order to solve problems of race, he offered revised versions and visions of both. Covering more than one hundred years of South African history, the book ranges from the stories of Fischer and his wife, Molly, to the courtroom drama of South Africa's great political trials, to the political intrigue of the 1960s and beyond.