UWI announces Canadian and Caribbean leaders to be honoured

The University of the West Indies today announced leaders of Canadian and Caribbean heritage to be honored at the eighth annual Toronto Benefit Gala, on Saturday, April 1, 2017, at The Ritz-Carlton Toronto, hosted by CBC News Anchor Dwight Drummond.

Desmond Mpilo Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, South Africa, will receive the Luminary Award. This award is given to people of Caribbean Heritage who are outstanding achievers on an international scale in their respective fields or people who have brought prominence to the Caribbean or to issues which affect the Region.

Archbishop Tutu has a strong passion for social justice, starting with his unflinching activism against Apartheid since the early 1970s, as the first Black Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and as Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. He has also used his high-profile position to campaign globally for poverty, HIV/AIDS, racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and land rights. This is the second time UWI is recognizing the Archbishop for his accomplishments as he received an honorary degree from the university in 1986. Other prestigious acknowledgements he has received include the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984, the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He will be represented at the UWI Toronto Gala by his daughter, Reverend Canon Mpho Tutu van Furth. Read more

Source: PR News Wire