Archbishop Tutu to deliver Forgiveness Project inaugural lecture

Archbishop Tutu

Archbishop Desmond Tutu will visit London on Wednesday 12 May, to give the inaugural lecture of The Forgiveness Project’s annual lecture series.

The lecture, entitled: ‘Is Violence Ever Justified?’ will take place at St John’s, Smith Square in London. It will also include a panel discussion in which Archbishop Tutu will be accompanied by Mary Kayitesi Blewitt OBE who lost 50 members of her family in the Rwandan genocide, Jo Berry, daughter of Sir Anthony Berry MP, who was killed in the Brighton Bomb, and Pat Magee, the former IRA activist jailed for the bombing and subsequently released under the Good Friday Agreement.

Archbishop Tutu has been patron of The Forgiveness Projection since its inception in 2004. The charity shares the stories of both victims and perpetrators of violence to show how people have resolved conflict both in the wider political context and within their own personal lives. It works in prisons, schools, faith communities, and beyond, to encourage and empower people to explore alternatives to revenge. Mary Kayitesi Blewitt, Jo Berry and Pat Magee’s stories form part of the charity’s “F Word” exhibition – a photographic exhibition of personal stories exploring forgiveness in the face of atrocity. Magee and Berry frequently work together to promote peace and understanding. For more information see: www.theforgivenessproject.com

The Forgiveness Project lecture will begin at 12pm.