place with so-called collaborators, they put a tire around the neck of some unsuspecting young activist who was suspected of being a spy for the apartheid government and set it alight. it was desmond tutu who would be there, would actually go into the crowd while this horror was taking place and call for calm. and so many times he wept and cried. and then, of course, when he led the truth and reconciliation commission, which was an absolutely towering achievement of his over the years that it took place, he had to listen to the pain and suffering of the oppressed every day. and this is what forged him. and this is what made him a custodian of the liberation struggle in south africa. john, i m grateful this morning, this boxing day morning that you ve taken time to reflect and remember. thank you, sir.
do. but why did he go so far? i think he had that flame of justice and freedom and the yearning for liberation from, you know, throughout his career as a cleric. from the time that he was bishop of johannesburg, and as his time progressed as a cleric. so he became more and more involved in the political struggle. but he always he never became a politician. he was always a man of the cloth who was there for justice and freedom. you know, i think it was the circumstances of his life. and having experienced firsthand the inhumanity and deg ra dei guess that came with apartheid. that he felt it his mission to represent, to be the voice of
or make money off those who do. drop a few moist bills at a gas station slot. see the full spectrum of human folly and commit some follies of your own . this is cnn breaking news. welcome to viewers in the united states and those joining us around the world. breaking news. sad breaking news this morning. archbishop desmond tutu, a pivotal champion of south africa s anti-apartheid movement in the 1980s, has died at the age of 90. the man known as the arch rose to prominence during the period of apartheid of political violence when racial segregation was enforced by the minority white government in the country.
neighbors ds betrayed neighbors. friends became informants. in this maelstrom, a diminutive anglican bishop was ever-present. desmond tutu was never afraid to step up to the racist regime using his bully pulpit of peace. during apartheid, archbishop tutu s position in the church gave him a semblance of protection, and his deep faith gave him an unwavering moral compass. even when it was deeply unpopular. i am not a politician, even though there are those who say so. i speak from the bible. the car was standing down there reporter: for him, tutu s defining moment came at a funeral. this is all we wanted, we want to kill him. reporter: mourners wanted to throw a suspected informer into his burning car, but tutu saved the man from the mob. saying he should be forgiven, that the struggle should rise
south africa. even then his message was powerful beyond the pulpit, which he was at heart an anglican priest, but more than that, he was one of the people who was nonviolently opposed to the apartheid regime, and he could go where others could not. that is why for instance, he s considered among many africans today who are mourning him, one of the greatest africans to ever have lived. not as powerful as mandela, but close. he s a figure we learned about in canon history as somebody who spoke very strongly, sometimes with tears, sometimes with laughter, but his message was never he was never unequ unequivocal, he was opposed to apartheid, any discrimination. after apartheid he spoke up on all the issues against the iraq war, for instance, he spoke out against any discrimination for lgbtq people in south africa, which is controversial across the african continent. that s the kind of man desmond