Archbishop Desmond Tutu speaks at Fieldhouse

The Fieldhouse neared capacity on April 6 as students, faculty, staff, administrators, and community members gathered to hear Archbishop Desmond Tutu deliver his speech entitled "Creating a Community of Peace." The Saint Joseph's University Office of Mission sponsored the event and provided for free admission to ticket holders.

Tutu, a Nobel Peace Laureate most notably recognized for his opposition to apartheid in South Africa during the '80s and early '90s, shared experiences from his involvement in the resolution of racial and cultural conflicts all over the world. He began by elaborating on the triumph over oppression that the end of apartheid in South Africa on April 27, 1994 represented.

But the Archbishop applied his beliefs that "good will always triumph over evil," and that "man is inherently good" to situations of strife and injustice all over the world, from Northern Ireland to Tibet. He then targeted the Saint Joseph's University community by contending that these principles could also be applied to racial and social inequality in Philadelphia.

Tutu explained to the audience that their problems can be solved because goodness, justice, and freedom will ultimately prevail. He stood strong in his belief that people are fundamentally good and are made for goodness.

"People are made like God, by God, for God," he said.

Tutu encouraged listeners to hold on to their faith and to forgive those who have harmed them.

"Justice has overcome injustice," said Tutu, referring to his native South Africa. "Freedom has happened. From a most unlikely place, goodness has prevailed."

After a nearly 45 minute speech, three students and one faculty member were each allowed to ask the Archbishop a question. When Elizabeth Linehan, RSM, Ph.D. asked the Archbishop what would be the appropriate way to deal with the lasting effects of slavery in the United States, a member of the audience screamed "Reparations!" eliciting a palpable reaction from the audience.

Tutu's response called for the descendants of slave owners to acknowledge their family histories and make a conscious effort to correct the injustice that still exists today.

When asked in an interview whom he would vote for in the 2008 Presidential Election, Tutu replied "I was thrilled that a woman candidate was being considered. But…as much as I love Hillary, I would vote for Obama."

Tutu also noted that he wanted the students of Saint Joseph's University to know that "God has a very high regard for young people. They dream dreams, and God dreams dreams too, and so god says 'help me to realize my dream.'"