Nontombi Naomi Tutu

Race & Gender Justice Activist

Nontombi Naomi Tutu

Race & Gender Justice Activist

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Biography

The challenges of growing up black and female in apartheid South Africa have been the foundation of the Rev. Nontombi Naomi Tutu’s life as a motivational speaker and activist for human rights. Those experiences taught her that our whole human family loses when we accept situations of oppression, and how the teaching and preaching of hate and division injure us all.

The human rights activist’s professional experience ranges from being an economist and development consultant in West Africa to being a program coordinator for programs on Race and Gender and Gender-based Violence in Education at the African Gender Institute at the University of Cape Town. In addition, the Rev. Tutu has taught at the University of Hartford, the University of Connecticut and Brevard College in North Carolina. She served as Program Coordinator for the historic Race Relations Institute at Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn., and was a part of the Institute’s delegation to the World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa.

Growing up the “daughter of Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu” has offered Naomi many opportunities and challenges in her life. Perhaps one of the greatest struggles was the call to ministry. She knew early in life that the one thing she would never be was a priest. She always said, “I have my father’s nose, I do not want his job.” It refused to be silenced, even as she carried her passion for justice into other fields. The call to preach and serve as an ordained clergyperson continued to tug at her. Finally, in her 50s, she responded and went to seminary. She is an Episcopal priest who most recently served as Associate Rector at All Saints, Beverly Hills. She currently resides in Atlanta where she is a priest associate at All Saints’ Episcopal.

She started her public speaking as a college student at Berea College in Kentucky in the 1970s when she was invited to speak at churches, community groups and colleges and universities about her experiences growing up in apartheid South Africa. Since that time, she has become a much sought-after speaker to groups as varied as business associations, professional conferences, elected officials and church and civic organizations.

The Rev. Tutu knew from the time she was young that she wanted to help change the lives of others and make a difference in the world. But she wanted to carve her own path. And that she has done.

As well as speaking and preaching, the Rev. Tutu has established Nozizwe Consulting. Its mission is to bring different groups together to learn from and celebrate their differences and acknowledge their shared humanity. As part of this work, she has led Truth and Reconciliation Workshops for groups dealing with different types of conflict. She is the recipient of four honorary doctorates from universities and colleges in the U.S. and Nigeria. She has served as a curate at Christ Church Cathedral as a Canon Missioner for Racial and Economic Equity, and as a Canon Missioner for Kairos West Community Center for the Cathedral of All Souls in Asheville, N.C. She is a single mother of two daughters and a son.

Speaker Videos

Staying Positive through Apartheid

Remembering MLK to Find Modern-Day Leaders

Meet Rev. Nontombi Naomi Tutu

Striving for Gender Justice

Courageous Compassion

MN Community Foundation Interview

See Fewer Videos

Speech Topics

Striving for Justice: Searching for Common Ground

After more than two years of COVID-19, the world will never be the same. The disease showed us our weaknesses in communities, our country and the world. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing, says the Rev. Naomi Tutu. The Race and Gender Justice Activist and daughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu says it gives us the chance to create a brighter future, where everyone can thrive. In this keynote, Naomi shares the challenges she faced growing up Black and female in apartheid South Africa and the lessons we can learn from it. You’ll also learn how our differences are just opportunities and how the foundation for a just society is where we accept others and recognize the potential for greatness in each of us. Whether in the workplace, university or school or just your community, these are tools we can all use to help build a just world.

Naomi customizes her content for specific audiences, including:

Business: Gain valuable insights on how to drive success by creating a culture of inclusion--leading to gains in revenue, innovation, productivity and a place where everyone is at their best.
Educators: Foster an environment where students learn to build a just world by being academically prepared, as well as socially conscious.
Students: Learn how a path to justice begins by recognizing and accepting that our differences are not a reason to hate but an opportunity to learn.
Healthcare: Discover how medical professionals can integrate Naomi’s lessons on striving for justice and seeking common ground into practice and policies.
Non-profits: Inspiration, information and guidance for nonprofits striving to make a lasting and positive impact on the world.

Truth & Reconciliation: Healing Wounds

Whether in our personal lives or the larger society, we have wounds that block our ability to be the wonderful gifts that we are meant to be in the world. We, too, have inflicted wounds on others, and all these wounds can be healed. However, it takes courage and the willingness to speak and hear the truth. That first step to healing is so often the hardest. We are afraid to speak our truth for fear of judgment, rejection and anger. We are also afraid to hear truths that might question our images of ourselves. Yet the pain is only the first step. What comes after that is healing and wholeness. Using South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission as a starting place and model in this presentation, the Rev. Naomi Tutu, a Race and Gender Justice Activist and daughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, talks about how we can heal as individuals and as a society.

Our Shared Humanity: Creating Understanding Through the Principles of MLK

In this empowering keynote speech, the Rev. Naomi Tutu, a Race and Gender Justice Activist and daughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, combines Dr. King's dream of the "Beloved Community" with the teachings of a South African proverb, speaking to the need to understand how our actions–or inactions–affect all with whom we come in contact and ourselves. Rather than focus on what separates us, Naomi encourages us to focus on our shared humanity to build a just world. Both the "Beloved Community" and the proverb share an underlying theme: The importance of not dehumanizing those with whom we are in conflict, but rather concentrating on what we have the power to change.

Intersectionality: Building Gender Coalitions Across Racial Lines

What happens when you accept oppression, division or hate? Everyone suffers, says the Rev. Naomi Tutu. In this empowering keynote, Naomi, a Race and Gender Justice Activist and daughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, explains how we can create a brighter future for everyone with an intersectional approach in the fight for the rights of women, especially those of color, and others marginalized by listening to each other and our stories, cultivating strong gender coalitions and creating allyship across racial lines. When we hear each other and get to know those who are not like us, the healing begins.

One Body, One Family, One World

Growing up during apartheid in South Africa, the Rev. Naomi Tutu had firsthand experience of how the prayers and support of the worldwide church are a real means of encouragement for struggling and suffering people.

Churches throughout the world offered support to the people of South Africa as they sought to change their country from one built on the separation of people based on race to one that celebrated the different gifts and cultures that their country has been blessed with. Churches sent letters of support to political prisoners and their families, sponsored communities in the Bantustans, and wrote letters to government and business leaders calling on them to live the Gospel imperative to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

This experience of being part of a worldwide community that sought the best for all God’s people became the basis of this talk, which speaks to the connections that exist between the many parts of the One Body. Naomi explores the requirements and benefits of living as people who are connected, one to one another, and the whole of creation through God’s grace to create a more harmonious world.

Testimonials

“Rev. Tutu was phenomenal. We heard nothing but praise. She was genuine and uplifting. A great storyteller and exactly what we were hoping for in her talk about such an important topic. Hearing her was like reconnecting with an old friend.”

- The Associate Alumni of Douglass College

"Rev. Naomi Tutu offered our audience an evening of humility, self-effacing humor, and profound insights into the insipid nature of racism's malignant grip on the hearts and minds of individuals. With her gracefully delivered oratory, she wove together the tapestry of personal experiences entwined into the tragic history of South Africa's apartheid. For a perfectly pitched campus forum, our students, faculty, and community were enlightened, illuminated and deeply moved with her humanitarian message. Tutu's message hit hard and deep into the consciousness of each member of the audience. The next day in my classes students raved about being totally absorbed by the integrity and power of her testimony. She broke through to an inter-generational audience about the need to reach out and listen to our enemies while searching for ways to share 'common ground.'"

- Fairfield University

“It was the honor of a lifetime to have Reverend Tutu join our campus community for an evening of conversation, exploration, and learning. From the moment she arrived on campus, Reverend Tutu was unassuming and a delight to work with. She made our students feel seen and comfortable and left us with wisdom we will carry with us in all that we do, for the rest of our lives.”

- Bryant University

"Naomi Tutu was a home run! Lots of great feedback from our schools. She got a standing ovation at the end. We could not have asked for a better person to jump start our conference!"

- AISNE

"Nontombi Naomi Tutu possesses the unique ability to amplify a message, energize her audience, and initiate personal and public momentum that sustains social change. To be on the receiving end of her abundant knowledge and wisdom was a tremendous gift, our planning process was seamless, and I highly recommend her for all those seeking to transform local and global connections in service to our common good."

- Syracuse University

"Naomi was FABULOUS! I am so proud that she was a part of our program as our featured keynote speaker. We had a packed room of 300, and attendance could not have been better."

- Florida Chautauqua Center

"Anyone who is considering her can call me and I will tell them how wonderful she is. She has a great projection to her voice, she does not use notes or a podium, she is genuine and wise, and she filled everyone's soul with hope. Plus I am going to tell the other YW's in the NW Region to consider her for their events. Naomi got a standing ovation. I have been at the YW 3 years and this is my 3^rd luncheon for them. It is the only standing ovation after a keynote in those 3 years!"

- YWCA Pierce County

"Naomi was fantastic and so well received by all. Thanks to you and APB for all that you did in helping us have this successful event. Please keep in touch."

- International Women’s Conference

"I would like to thank Ms. Tutu sincerely for her participation as a keynote speaker at the recent 25^th Annual Northwest Booking Conference in Eugene, OR, on behalf of Arts Northwest, the Board of Directors and myself. The Northwest Booking Conference is an integral part of the booking, touring and presenting life of the western arts community, and her contribution added depth and integrity to the conference. We hope she will consider working with us again in the future. Evaluations of her keynote presentation were overwhelmingly favorable, so thank her again for her contribution to one of the most successful and productive Northwest Booking Conferences ever."

- Executive Director, Arts Northwest

"We would like to thank Naomi sincerely for coming to Port Angeles this past weekend, for what turned out to be an extremely successful event for all concerned and on so many levels. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, not only regarding the specific events of the weekend, but also in applauding the fact that we may have set in motion a process of dialogue founded on newly discovered trust that will continue to ripple and extend for a long time to come. Reverend Michael Carr writes, “it was such a blessing to have [Ms. Tutu] preach at St. Andrew’s. Even though [her] time with us was brief, [her] words were wise and healing. [She has] reminded us that we are part of a world wide church and that we are never facing adversity by ourselves. I thank [her] for instilling hope, especially in these turbulent times.” For all of us, Naomi’s presence added depth and integrity to the many positive efforts already going on in the town, while your insight and wise advice opened new doors."

- The Jubilee Fund

- Executive Director, Arts Northwest

- YWCA Pierce County

"Naomi was FABULOUS! I am so proud that she was a part of our program as our featured keynote speaker. We had a packed room of 300, and attendance could not have been better."

- Florida Chautauqua Center

"On behalf of the Women's Center, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Trinity College Black Women's Organization (TCBWO), and the many other sponsors of Ms. Tutu’s program, I would like to express my gratitude for her visit to Trinity College on February 17, 2005. The feedback from her talk contained words like "inspirational," "amazing," and "uplifting." By weaving stories from South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation hearings with her personal experiences, and the necessity for honest talk about race and class, Ms. Tutu planted seeds needed for progressive social change at Trinity, and in people's personal lives. It was a great aid for those of us in the "trenches," so to speak, as we try to undo the damage wrought from the institutionalized racism, sexism and heterosexism in our midst. I hope that we can meet and work together again in the future!"

- Women's Center, Trinity College