“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains,
but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
—Nelson Mandela
On July 18, the world honours Nelson Mandela’s legacy—his life, his sacrifice, and his unwavering belief in human dignity and equality. A man who spent 27 years behind bars, Mandela emerged not with bitterness, but with hope. He chose forgiveness. He chose freedom—not just for himself, but for everyone. As we approach Nelson Mandela Day, the world pauses to remember a man who gave up his freedom so others could gain theirs. But Mandela’s words remind us that freedom is more than the absence of oppression—it is the presence of dignity, choice and possibility.
So, what does freedom mean?
We ask this question every day—but from a child’s perspective.
For a child in Ghana, freedom might mean walking safely to school instead of working in a field.
For a girl in Ethiopia, it might mean having the voice to say no to child marriage.
For a child in Paraguay, it could mean clean water close to home so they’re healthy enough to learn.
For the children we walk alongside, freedom isn’t abstract—it’s access. It’s safety. It’s choice.
We believe every child should be free to grow without obstacles. And that education is the most powerful tool to unlock that freedom. It opens doors. It expands futures. It offers the simple, transformative right to choose.
Mandela’s long walk
Nelson Mandela understood the cost of that kind of freedom.
He spent 27 years in prison for defying the injustice of apartheid—a system built to divide, silence, and suppress.
Apartheid laws, rooted in racism, stripped Black South Africans of basic human rights, forcing them to live in a world of inequality, exclusion, and fear. Mandela refused to accept that future for his country.
Even behind bars, he remained a voice of hope, leadership and resilience. And when he was finally released, he helped bring an end to apartheid and became South Africa’s first Black, democratically elected president.
Yet even then, he reminded us:
“The truth is that we are not yet free…
We have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed…
The true test of our devotion to freedom is just beginning.”
Freedom, through the eyes of a child
At Children Believe, we see that test every day.
Freedom isn’t just a concept— it’s the everyday work of tearing down hunger, exploitation, and injustice so children can learn, grow, and begin building the kind of future poverty makes impossible.
We do this community by community, walking alongside local partners to support those already fighting for change. Together, we work to clear the path—because no child should be held back by the weight of poverty.
Freedom is stolen in countless ways from children around the world:
Hunger that silences concentration.
Labour that robs time, potential and childhood.
Violence that shatters innocence.
Illness that keeps children at home.
Thirst that travels farther than the classroom.
A world that sometimes says “not you.”
But poverty is not destiny.
Wherever it shows up, we rise to meet it with the tools that build lasting change.
And in every child returning to school, every backpack filled, every voice uplifted—we see it:
The quiet beginnings of freedom.
Because every time a child enters a classroom and stays there,
We are not just offering knowledge.
We are restoring dreams.
We are protecting choices.
We are saying: You belong. You matter. You are free to grow.
What does freedom mean to you?
Today, across the globe, conflict and crisis continue. Children are caught in the crossfire of war, displacement, and injustice. Humanity feels distant. Rights feel optional.
But if Mandela taught us anything, it’s that freedom must be shared to be real.
And that the journey to justice belongs to all of us.
So we leave you with a question:
What does freedom look like for you?
And what are you willing to do so that others can have it too?
In 27 Minutes for 27 Years by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, a powerful reflection captures Mandela’s legacy: he was “willing to give up my freedom, and my life for your equality… That’s a sign of a true warrior.”
What will we give up? What will we fight for?
Let’s keep asking. And let’s keep walking.
Because every child deserves to live in a world where they are free to be who they are—and become whoever they want to be.