Lesotho

DESMOND TUTU: WHY HE IS GREAT!

Desmond Mpilo Tutu, who was born on 7th October 1931, grew up in the landlocked, third world, and generally unfortunate country of Lesotho. He rose to worldwide fame in the 1980s, an opponent against segregation and discrimination. He was the first black Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, and primate to the Church of the Province of Southern Africa, now the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. Tutu is very active in the defence of human rights, and equality for every person in the world. He uses his high profile to speak for the oppressed. He has campaigned to fight AIDS, tuberculosis, homophobia, poverty and racism. Tutu recieved the Nobel Peace prize in 1984, the Ghandi Peace prize in 2005, the Presidential medal for freedom in 2009 and was inducted into the Golden Key International Honor Society as a well deserving honorary member and also compiled many books on his speeches and sayings, to name a few of his many achievements. Whenever asked why he became a religious leader, he would reply, " When I was young I was walking around the streets with my mother and a white man in priest's clothing walked past and raised my hat to his mother. I couldn't believe my eyes: a white man who raised his hat to a black working class woman! From that moment on, all priests were good people to me, and I wanted to be a good person." Although Tutu wanted to be a physician, his family could not afford the training so he followed his father's footsteps into teaching. He studied at the Pretoria Banta College from 1951 to 1953 before going on to teach at Johannesburg Bantu High School. However, he resigned after the passege of the Bantu Education Act. He continued his studies, this time in theology, at St. Peter's Theology College in Rosttensville. In 1960 he was officially made an Anglican Priest. Tutu then traveled to Kings College in London, where he received his bachelors and master's degree in theology. He went back to South Africa and spoke lectures about the circumstances of the South African population. Everyone was impressed by him. He went on holiday to England with his wife (Nomaliza Tutu) and four children (Trevor, Theresa, Naomi and Mpilo). When he returned he was to become the Anglican Dean of South Africa, the first black person to ever hold this position.

By Eva