Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu
Archbishop Desmond Tutu — Nobel Peace Prize laureate, leader of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, and one of the most recognized moral voices of the 20th century.
Herbert met Tutu in Seattle. The details of this encounter deserve to be filled in.
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People Tutu Was Connected To
Through Desmond Tutu, Herbert's network extends to three of the most consequential moral and political figures of the late 20th century:
- Nelson Mandela — Tutu's closest ally in the struggle against apartheid and first president of a democratic South Africa. The personal and political relationship was one of the most documented of both men's lives. Mandela came directly to Tutu's Cape Town residence upon release from Robben Island in 1990, and Tutu chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission under Mandela's presidency.
- John Paul II — the pope Tutu met with at the Vatican during the anti-apartheid years, opening a bridge between Rome and the South African church.
- Dalai Lama — fellow Nobel Peace laureate and lifelong friend; their Book of Joy conversation is one of the great interfaith records of the century.
- Barack Obama (who eulogized Tutu)
Further people from the Global South with whom Tutu had regular, substantive contact across his religious and social justice work:
- Allan Boesak
- Frank Chikane
- Beyers Naudé
- Albertina Sisulu
- Ela Gandhi
- Mercy Amba Oduyoye
- Manas Buthelezi
- Smangaliso Mkhatshwa
- Gustavo Gutiérrez