Arun Manilal Gandhi was a South African-born American author and socio-political activist, the son of Manilal Mohandas Gandhi and the fifth grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. |
His family has its roots in India. |
He was born in South Africa and later moved to India with his family. |
At five years old, he briefly met Mahatma Gandhi and eventually lived with him at the Sevagram ashram in India after India’s Independence in 1946. |
Returning to South Africa at 14, he spent his childhood there. |
In India, he worked as a journalist and authored his first book in 1949. |
While living at Sevagram, he taught illiterate children and their parents under his grandfather’s guidance. |
In 1982, he critiqued the Indian government's subsidizing of the film 'Gandhi', but later praised its portrayal of his grandfather. |
He moved to the United States in 1987 for a study at the University of Mississippi. |
In 1991, he founded the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in Memphis, Tennessee. |
In 1996, he co-founded the ‘Season for Nonviolence’ event. |
He signed 'Humanism and Its Aspirations' in 2003. |
In 2003, he published 'Legacy of Love: My Education in the Path of Nonviolence.’ |
In 2007, he held a teaching position at Salisbury University. |
On November 12, 2007, he spoke about 'Nonviolence in the Age of Terrorism' at Salisbury University. |
After his wife's passing in 2007, he relocated the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence to Rochester, New York. |
In 2008, he faced controversy at Christian Brothers University but continued teaching at Salisbury University. |
He gave speeches worldwide on non-violence. |
In the following years, he continued to give talks advocating peace and nonviolence. |
He was featured in a documentary in 2009 and continued to speak on global platforms. |
He co-authored children's books in 2014 and 2016. |
His book 'The Gift of Anger' was published in 2015. |
As of 2016, he resided in Rochester, New York. |
In November 2022, he spoke at Augustana College's Global Lecture Series in Illinois. |