U-Matic

Mandela Tape #1 at Metro Airport

U-Matic S tape containing footage of a screen showing a live video feed of Nelson Mandela's arrival at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport on June 28, 1990, followed by direct footage of Mandela's brief speech inside the airport, including an introduction from Mayor Coleman A. Young.

The tape begins with the camera filming a projection screen set up inside the airport, showing a feed of the delegation waiting along a red carpet on the tarmac outside. The monitor then shows the Trump Shuttle airplane carrying Nelson Mandela taxing along the runways, and eventually to the red carpet where the boarding ramp is moved into place. Nelson and Winnie Mandela emerge from the plane at 6 minutes and 15 seconds into the video. The Mandelas take some time to greet the welcome party, which includes Mayor Coleman A. Young, Michigan First Lady Janet Blanchard, Governor James Blanchard, UAW President Owen Bieber, Transafrica's Margaret Baylor, Councilman Arthur Johnson, and Rosa Parks. The camera then follows activist and singer Harry Belafonte--who arrived among Mandela's entourage--as he also stops to shake several hands inside the airport terminal.

Following a cut, Belafonte is shown in person, talking to members of the press. The camera pans around as the dignitaries wait on stage for the program to begin.

The camera then returns to the projection screen as it shows Mandela approaching the stage. The camera returns to the live event as Nelson and Winnie Mandela then take the stage to applause. Mayor Coleman A. Young steps to the podium where he introduces Nelson Mandela.

Mandela proceeds to make a brief speech stating his love for Detroit, thanking several of the dignitaries, and recognizing them as his "comrades in arms... in the struggle against racial oppression." Afterward, the camera continues to roll as Mandela makes his way off stage through the crowd of dignitaries, before stopping once he disappears from view.

The recording is on a 3M UCA 30S U-Matic tape with a handwritten label on the front. The case is in a black plastic latching case with matching labels.