South Africa has announced a state funeral for Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who died on December 26, 2021, at age 90, following a week of national mourning. The ceremony will include two days of lying in state before the official funeral on January 1 in Cape Town.
Tributes from world leaders, including U.S. President Joe Biden, former President Barack Obama, Queen Elizabeth II, and Pope Francis, highlighted Tutu’s role in dismantling apartheid and advocating for racial equality. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa credited him with helping create a "liberated South Africa."
Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 1984 for his anti-apartheid activism, was a central figure in the struggle against the white minority regime that enforced racial segregation from 1948 to 1991. His legacy of nonviolent resistance inspired generations of African leaders, including Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta.
Public mourning has centered on Cape Town’s St George’s Cathedral, where thousands have laid flowers. A local mourner, Ellie Shortall, reflected on how Tutu’s work enabled her interracial family to thrive, noting, "We wouldn’t have been able to love each other, marry, and have a baby" during apartheid.
The cathedral’s bells will ring daily at noon until Friday, followed by Tutu’s cremation. His ashes will remain at the site. The announcement comes weeks after the death of apartheid-era president FW de Klerk, who died at 85.
