MOUNT UNION COLLEGE Nobel prize winner speaks on freedom

Desmond Tutu thanked the Mount Union College crowd -- and all Americans -- for his freedom.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
ALLIANCE -- Desmond Tutu was in his 60s when he voted for the first time in his native South Africa.
Tutu, winner of the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts toward a nonviolent end to apartheid in South Africa, was guest speaker Tuesday for the Mount Union College Schooler Lecture Series. He thanked the guests who packed the 4,000-seat gymnasium -- and all Americans -- for his freedom.
He said that through prayer and protests, Americans -- many of them young people -- helped change the moral climate of the United States. Americans' change of heart influenced members of Congress, who then passed anti-apartheid legislation and overturned that system of institutionalized segregation. America's stance against apartheid, in turn, helped lead to democracy for South Africa, he said.
"Why are we [South Africans] free?" Tutu asked the crowd. "Because you supported us. Because you protested, and you prayed … and we were prayed for. We were prayed for all over the world."
Ending terrorism: Tutu said the solution to ending terrorism and other violence is to close the gap between rich and poor.
"As long as circumstances make people desperate, there will be violence," Tutu said.
To close the gap, there must be forgiveness, he said. "Christians say they are to be Christ-like, but Jesus said we are to be like God. So that means love your enemy.
"There will be no peace, no future, in Palestine or Israel or Ireland, until there is talk of forgiveness," he said. "Revenge promotes revenge, violence promotes more violence. You can't get true security from the barrel of a gun."
Tutu said that in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorists attacks on New York City and Washington D.C., Americans must tighten security, but be very careful that increased security does not come at the expense of civil liberty.
"You should only suspend the rule of law when the situation is desperate, and even then, not for very long," he said.
Tutu said people don't have to be educated to understand that human beings were made to be free. He said those with "pain in the pit of their tummies" because of racism and oppression need to band together and create a safe place where they can talk about their experiences. Sharing experiences has a calming effect on those doing the telling, and helps others to understand, he said.
A greater understanding of a cause will attract allies who are greatly needed to fight any injustice, Tutu said. He had a word of caution, however, for those who champion any cause.
He said his father always told him, "Improve your argument; don't raise your voice."