The Tribune

CELEBRATING Women International (CWI) has announced that Nontombi Naomi Tutu, a race and gender justice activist from South Africa, will be the guest speaker at a special event next month.

On September 2, the group will hold its Official Women of Distinction 2015 ceremony for more than 40 Bahamian women.

The event takes place in the ballroom at Government House.

The challenges of growing up black and female in apartheid South Africa have been the foundation of Ms Tutu’s life as an 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. In her speeches she blends this passion for human dignity with humor and personal stories.

Ms Tutu is the third child of Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Nomalizo Leah Tutu. She was born in South Africa and had the opportunity to live in many communities and countries. She was educated in Swaziland, the US, and England, and has divided her adult life between South Africa and the US.

Her professional experience ranges from being a development consultant in West Africa to being a coordinator for programmes on race, gender and gender-based violence in education at the African Gender Institute at the University of Cape Town. In addition, Ms Tutu has taught at the University of Hartford, University of Connecticut, and Brevard College in North Carolina. She served as programme coordinator for the historic Race Relations Institute at Fisk University, and was a part of the institute’s delegation to the World Conference Against Racism in Durban.

Founded in 2013, Celebrating Women International aims to mobilise and inspire women across the globe to honour, recognise and celebrate the contributions of women, leveraging their untapped leadership capabilities in order for them to thrive in the world so that they can lead productive lives.

“Celebrating Woman International thinks honouring women for their accomplishments and hard work is a wonderful way to thank and inspire other women within the community. These awards are intended to do that. The selected honourees have demonstrated an untiring zeal for service to the community and inspire us through their selfless commitment to improving the lives of others,” CWI Corporate Secretary Collin Smith said.

During the month of September, Celebrating Women International will announce the names of all the honourees and give more details about the upcoming events.