Mandela wrote this 1961 essay following the All-In African Conference that elected him leader of the National Action Council (NAC). He opens with a quote from a man who attended the conference to emphasize the sense of dignity and commitment to action among the people. The conference called for a national convention of all adult men and women to draft and enact a new constitution. The conference and NAC resolved that if the government failed to call the national convention by 31 May, 1961, the NAC would lead a countrywide demonstration of noncooperation and call on support for the movement from abroad. Other resolutions adopted at the conference included the condemnation of arrests of members of the Continuation Committee, a call for lifting the ban on the ANC and the PAC, and identification of the Bantu Authorities Act as forcibly imposed. 

Mandela notes that the resolutions were unanimously adopted by a diverse body of more than 1,500 delegates and 150 organizations united against the Nationalist government. The display of solidarity among the diverse groups indicates the conference’s success, but he is wary of the European participants, who he feels may falter when the time for action and the implementation of the resolutions comes.