I Am an African

I am an African. I am a human being. I cry and I laugh. If you wound me, I bleed— and my blood is red. As a gentleman, I smile. I hold no bitterness and ask no charity. I am proud. I am a man made in the image of God. Therefore I am precious. I am a temple of the Holy Spirit. I am a man, a human being, an African. When Abraham hungered, he found refuge in Egypt. When Herod sought to kill the infants, Jesus found refuge in Africa. On that first Good Friday, an African carried the cross of Jesus. I am an African, and I hold no bitterness and ask no charity. I lie at your doorstep dressed in misery, in AIDS, in hunger and ignorance. We were created to form a family. We will survive only if we are united. We can be free and progress only together. Together we can be human. I am a child of God, not a stepchild. I am an African. I am a person. You members of the G-8: you ask me what I need. Well then—what do you need? What do you desire for yourselves? For what you want, I want too. I am an African. Desmond Tutu, 2008

Anglican Archbishop of South Africa