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  • Hello.

  • This is 6 Minute English

  • from BBC Learning English.

  • I'm Sam.

  • And I'm Neil.

  • In this 6 Minute English, we're

  • celebrating the life of one of

  • modern South Africa's founding

  • fathers - the icon and Nobel

  • laureate, Archbishop

  • Desmond Tutu.

  • Archbishop Tutu was one the

  • leaders of the non-violent

  • movement to end the system

  • of racial segregation known

  • as apartheid.

  • Apartheid was

  • enforced against the black

  • population of South Africa

  • by the white minority

  • government from 1948

  • until 1991.

  • It's impossible to imagine

  • South Africa's difficult

  • journey to freedom without

  • Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

  • While other anti-apartheid

  • leaders, like his close

  • friend Nelson Mandela,

  • were imprisoned or even

  • killed, Archbishop Tutu

  • was there at every step

  • of the struggle - the

  • rebellious priest

  • speaking out against

  • the injustices of apartheid.

  • Archbishop Tutu was a hero

  • of the 20th century.

  • He died in December 2021

  • and was laid to rest in

  • Cape Town in a state

  • funeral on New Year's Day.

  • In this programme, we'll

  • hear about some important

  • moments from his life and,

  • as usual, learn some

  • related vocabulary as well.

  • But first I have a

  • question for you, Neil.

  • Nelson Mandela was sometimes

  • affectionately called by

  • his clan's name, Madiba,

  • but do you know what

  • nickname Archbishop Desmond

  • Tutu was given?

  • Was it:

  • a) The Des?

  • b) The Bish?

  • or

  • c) The Arch?

  • I don't know, but I'll guess

  • his nickname was c) the Arch.

  • OK, Neil.

  • We'll find out

  • if that's the correct answer

  • at the end of the programme.

  • Desmond Mpilo Tutu was born

  • in 1931 in the town of

  • Klerksdorp in northern

  • South Africa.

  • In this

  • 2014 interview with BBC

  • World Service programme,

  • Outlook, he looks back

  • on some of his earliest

  • childhood memories.

  • I had a very happy

  • childhood.

  • I am a boy

  • child between two girls.

  • My sisters sometimes

  • thought that our mother

  • rather spoiled me,

  • pampered me.

  • My mother

  • was not educated much

  • but she had an incredible

  • loving for people and

  • was very generous.

  • Part of my own

  • unhappiness was

  • precisely that anyone

  • could want to take

  • advantage of such a

  • gracious, gentle,

  • generous person.

  • As a child, Desmond

  • Tutu's mother would pamper

  • him - give him special

  • treatment and make him

  • feel special by doing

  • nice things for him.

  • He also says his mother

  • spoiled him - let him

  • do or have whatever he

  • wanted.

  • Spoiling a child

  • usually has a bad effect

  • on their character as

  • they grow up, but this

  • doesn't seem to be

  • true for Desmond Tutu.

  • What upset the young

  • Desmond was how his

  • mother was treated by

  • some white South Africans

  • who would take advantage

  • of her - treat her

  • unfairly for their

  • own benefit.

  • In 1955 Desmond Tutu

  • married his wife, Leah.

  • They had children and

  • the family moved to

  • London for a time,

  • before returning to

  • South Africa when Desmond

  • was made Dean of

  • Johannesburg.

  • He knew that returning

  • to a racially segregated

  • South Africa would be

  • difficult for his family.

  • In this interview with

  • BBC World Service

  • programme, Outlook,

  • Archbishop Tutu remembers

  • one terrifying incident

  • involving his wife, Leah,

  • who had gone to the

  • Johannesburg traffic

  • department to renew

  • a car licence.

  • ... they handcuffed her,

  • and they walked with

  • her in the streets,

  • she was paraded, and

  • then when the court case

  • was heard my wife was

  • acquitted - but they

  • had done what they

  • wanted to do which was

  • humiliate her, and in

  • the process hit at me.

  • I have to say that I

  • found those actions

  • near unforgivable,

  • because I was the one

  • who was out in the

  • forefront...

  • although

  • Leah... she's a

  • toughie!

  • Police officers arrested

  • and handcuffed Leah

  • to humiliate her - make

  • her feel ashamed

  • and stupid.

  • When she went to court,

  • Leah was acquitted -

  • declared not guilty of

  • committing a crime.

  • But the police continued

  • to harass her, even

  • though his wife was,

  • in his own words, a

  • toughie - someone who

  • is tough and determined.

  • Archbishop Tutu describes

  • the event as "near

  • unforgivable" but, in

  • fact, he did forgive

  • the white police

  • officers, and in 1991,

  • at the end of apartheid,

  • he started the Truth

  • and Reconciliation

  • Commission as a way

  • of healing divisions

  • between black and

  • white communities.

  • What an inspirational life!

  • But we still don't

  • know what his nickname

  • was, Sam!

  • Right, in my question

  • I asked Neil what

  • Archbishop Desmond

  • Tutu's nickname was.

  • I guessed it was,

  • The Arch.

  • Which was the correct

  • answer!

  • Affectionately

  • known as The Arch,

  • Desmond Tutu will be

  • remembered as a man

  • of peace and forgiveness.

  • Right, let's recap the

  • vocabulary we've

  • learned in this programme,

  • starting with pamper -

  • to give someone

  • special treatment.

  • If you spoil a child,

  • you let them do whatever

  • they want, but be careful

  • because they might take

  • advantage of you - treat

  • you badly for their

  • own benefit.

  • To humiliate someone

  • means to make them feel

  • ashamed or stupid.

  • If you are acquitted of

  • a crime, it is judged

  • that you are not guilty.

  • And finally, a toughie

  • is a slang word to

  • describe someone, like

  • Archbishop Desmond Tutu

  • or his wife, Leah, who

  • is tough and determined.

  • Once again, our six

  • minutes are up.

  • Goodbye for now!

  • Bye!

Hello.

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