Mahatma Gandhi's primary cause was the Indian independence movement, which sought to create an Indian state that was free of British rule. He was also committed to a philosophy of peaceful resistance through which the Indian people could achieve their goals without resorting to war or violence.
Though Gandhi spent most of his life fighting for the independence of India, this was not the only major civil rights struggle that he was involved in. Prior to World War I, he spent 20 years in South Africa opposing institutional discrimination against Indians. Following Indian independence in 1947, Gandhi attempted to mediate the Hindu-Muslim conflict in Bengal but was assassinated over his involvement.
