--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Although Verwoerd thought Africans were…" description: "\"Although Verwoerd thought Africans were lower than animals, his death did not yield us any pleasure. Political assassination is not something I or the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a37/nelson-mandela-248_animal_although-verwoerd-thought-africans-were_768883.jpg" --- # Although Verwoerd thought Africans were lower than… ![“Although Verwoerd thought Africans were lower than animals, his death did not yield us any pleasure. Political assassination is not something I or the ANC ever supported. It is a primitive way of contending with an opponent” quote by Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a37/nelson-mandela-248_animal_although-verwoerd-thought-africans-were_768883.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a37/nelson-mandela-248_animal_although-verwoerd-thought-africans-were_768883.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a37/nelson-mandela-248_animal_although-verwoerd-thought-africans-were_768883.jpg) > “Although Verwoerd thought Africans were lower than animals, his death did not yield us any pleasure. Political assassination is not something I or the ANC ever supported. It is a primitive way of contending with an opponent” [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mandela condemns violent retaliation, emphasizing moral high ground and political principle over vengeance. **In simple terms:** Violence is not justified, even against oppressors. Key Takeaway Choose justice, not revenge. Themes justice politics ethics reconciliation nonviolence Mood reflective determined hopeful Type political ethical inspirational When to use this quote - post‑apartheid healing - political activism - conflict resolution - public speaking Key Concepts human rights political strategy moral philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How can societies balance justice and forgiveness? - What non‑violent tactics effectively confront oppression? A Different Perspective Violent acts can undermine moral authority and fuel cycles of retaliation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Primitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primitive/) ## Related quotes > [“You see, the system was set up after the political assassination of John F. Kennedy to bring in more repression. 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It doesn't necessarily mean harmony and peace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/like-primitive-we-now-live-in-a-global-village-of-our-own-making-a/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/far-out-in-the-uncharted-backwaters-of-the-unfashionable-end-of-the/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Zippers are primal and modern at the very same time. On the one hand, your zipper is primitive and reptilian, on the other, mechanical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/zippers-are-primal-and-modern-at-the-very-same-time-on-the-one-hand/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [ Again, I hear almost everyday from atheists who write off religion as primitive, premodern nonsense. 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I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masanobu-fukuoka/life-on-a-small-farm-might-seem-primitive-but-by-living-such-a-life/) [Masanobu Fukuoka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masanobu-fukuoka/) ## More by Nelson Mandela > [We must work together to ensure the equitable distribution of wealth, opportunity and power in our society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/we-must-work-together-to-ensure-the-equitable-distribution-of-wealth/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Especially for those of us who lived in single cells, you had the time to sit down and think, and we discovered that sitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/especially-for-those-of-us-who-lived-in-single-cells-you-had-the-time/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [If you don't allow people to contribute, to offer their point of view, or to criticize what has been put before them, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/if-you-don-t-allow-people-to-contribute-to-offer-their-point-of-view/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/courageous-people-do-not-fear-forgiving-for-the-sake-of-peace/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [As a leader... I have always endeavored to listen to what each and every person in a discussion had to say before venturing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/as-a-leader-i-have-always-endeavored-to-listen-to-what-each-and-every/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Some of the mission groups that have been responsible for our education have not been part of the government. In fact, they acted contrary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/some-of-the-mission-groups-that-have-been-responsible-for-our/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“I believed that I would become a counsellor to the Thembu king,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-believed-that-i-would-become-a-counsellor-to-the-thembu-king/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [What he means by this is that instead of saying you'll "try", you need to "do". And as we let our light shine, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/what-he-means-by-this-is-that-instead-of-saying-you-ll-try-you-need/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-learned-that-courage-was-not-the-absence-of-fear-but-the-triumph/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [We need to exert ourselves that much more, and break out of the vicious cycle of dependence imposed on us by the financially powerful:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/we-need-to-exert-ourselves-that-much-more-and-break-out-of-the/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“Prison is a still point in a turning world, and it is very easy to remain in the same place in jail while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/prison-is-a-still-point-in-a-turning-world-and-it-is-very-easy-to/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [A fundamental concern for others in our individual and community lives would go a long way in making the world the better place we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/a-fundamental-concern-for-others-in-our-individual-and-community/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [I am aware of what the position is in the United States of America. 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