Born in Seattle on 28 October 1955, the son of an attorney and a schoolteacher, Bill Gates had, by the age of 17, sold his first computer program - a timetabling system for the school - for $4,200. From its reckless abortion, so much suffering has followed. Muhammad Yunus - Banker to the poor Elected president in 1990, he behaved erratically and, at times, dictatorially. Tony Benn - Veteran anti-war campaigner But his later career suggests that perhaps there are no heroes, only hero-worshippers who can rapidly disperse. Bolivarian revolutionary leader, inspiring the left in Latin America and beyond. He spent almost two years in an isolation cell the size of your toilet, in Guantanamo, where I first met him. Despite being attacked, physically and verbally, he has never allowed himself to be bullied into silence. Isabel Hilton, 10. There's an integrity to Dylan that has survived many changes in artistic direction: in his own words, "to keep on keeping on like a bird that flew". And though the facts may be gloomy reading, Chomsky does remain an optimist. Other women have done so and equally well - Alice Walker, Erica Jong, Joan Smith and so on - but Greer stands out. Clive Stafford Smith - Human-rights lawyer He has been the editor of Granta, a senior editor at the Observer and a staff writer at the Times. 4. She was always true to her word. 24. There needs to be a Palestinian state. Chávez began with only two political projects: to elect a constituent assembly that would redraw the state to include the poor, and to revive Opec to ensure a higher price for the country's chief income-earner, oil. I don't believe Blair acted in bad faith. Rami Elhanan is an Israeli graphic designer living in Jerusalem. He was inspired by the ideals of the European Enlightenment and helped to bring these over to the New World. His tactics - to occupy workplaces instead of marching in the street, to proclaim demands that were widely political as well as local workers' grievances, and to join forces with Poland's mutinous intellectuals - forced the regime to give way. While Spielberg guaranteed that the world would remember Oskar Schindler, there were others who also saw the plight of the European Jews and went the extra mile to save as many as possible. His appeal lies in demonstrating that there are things more powerful and enduring than military force. He is a giant of a man who humbles us all. Rami and his wife, Nurit, are members of Bereaved Families for Peace, which brings together Israelis and Palestinians who have lost loved ones - and includes relatives of suicide bombers. When she told European politicians that she wanted a rebate on the billions Britain overpaid the Community, she held out until she got one. Mao Zedong may well have joked, as Stalin did of the pope, "How many divisions does the Dalai Lama have?" The confrontation between Aung San Suu Kyi and the brutish military rulers of Burma (officially known as Myanmar) has the power of myth. Simon Weston - Falklands war veteran Stephen Hawking - Leading theoretical physicist Moazzam is an extremist all right - he believes passionately in charity and justice for all. It is easy to imagine the Dalai Lama's fate had he not fled: he would have spent years in a Chinese prison, accused of crimes against the Communist Party; he would have been dragged out to be ridiculed and abused at mass rallies during the cultural revolution; and, if he survived, he might have been released in old age to live in Beijing on a modest stipend, holding a symbolic post in the state bureaucracy. But the following famous heroes have also helped pave the way for justice for generations to come. John Pilger, 48. Neal Ascherson, 45. Bob Dylan - Singer-songwriter Yet, on release, he did not seek revenge; he showed his statesmanship, good grace and humour, and did not reject the white minority that had held millions of his fellow black countrymen as almost non-citizens, almost slave labour. The Labour Party probably would have won under John Smith in 1997 - and yet, without the ideological changes Blair pioneered, such a landslide would have been unlikely. To leave would have been to break the promise she made to her people. In 1995, her husband became ill with prostate cancer but was not allowed into Burma. What Was It like to Be a Jew in Nazi Occupied Rome. They have taken to calling her the "anti-Kremlin project" of Boris Berezovsky and the western secret services, and accuse her of discovering a new money-spinner for journalists - earning human-rights protection prizes. China's Communist Party calls him a fake religious leader, the head of an evil clique that plots to "split" the motherland. His pamphlet, Common Sense, published in 1776, stated that the American colonists should rise up against the English. She was among the first to urge prisoner-of-war status for Guantanamo detainees. Mordechai Vanunu - Israeli whistle-blower She has not seen her sons since 1988. Tim Symonds, Burwash, East Sussex, 35. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. This article first appeared in the 22 May 2006 issue of the New Statesman, Heroes of our time - the top 50. Anna Lindsay, Cambridge, He is living proof that one man can make a difference. But Chomsky ensures that America has no excuse. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell My Personal Information | Ad Choices  If she had taken power in 1990, her appeal may have dulled by now. But perhaps when people think of bravery and moral courage in South Africa they think first, and inevitably, of Nelson Mandela. CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice, http://www.djindexes.com/mdsidx/html/tandc/indexestandcs.html. Sadly the republic turned out to be somewhat more brutal and ugly than Rousseau would have intended.eval(ez_write_tag([[250,250],'historyhit_com-box-4','ezslot_13',160,'0','0'])); An English writer and philosopher Thomas Paine became known as one of the founding fathers of the American Revolution. I applaud Berners-Lee's selfless magnanimity and modesty as much as his life-changing invention. The Americans fear his influence in Latin America, but maybe his ambitions lie further afield. Some acts of heroism have taken place over years or decades, the result of hard work and tireless labor. Crowned 53 years ago, she is the most travelled head of state in history, She has reigned through several generations, enduring personal and public difficulties, without once losing her dignity or being sullied by scandal. He has set in motion a genuine crusade for American law students who also want to make a difference. A panic-stricken Tibetan regency handed over power to the teenage spiritual leader and proclaimed him king. And he continues to campaign for, and support, those British prisoners in Guantanamo Bay who have so illegitimately been denied their rights. Jimmy Carter - US president, 1977-81 Richard Gott, 12. 66. 1. He was granted honorary French citizenship and had a role in the National Convention. This is not an attack on the Bastille or a seizure of the Winter Palace, but a long-drawn-out process of peaceful conflict and change that has brought fresh players on to the stage. Your email address will not be published. Democrat who did wonders for Northern Ireland, as well as Monica Lewinsky, He made a better job of running the world's most powerful country than his predecessor or his successor, and still had time for a little fun! For his followers in Tibet, these epithets tend to confirm his claim to moral leadership. A new strike wave began in Poland in the early summer of 1980. Are there any well-known figures your child looks up to?

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