This is the scene in Soweto on June 16, 1976. Over 20,000 black South African students gather in peaceful protest of an unfair mandate enforced upon their already-inadequate school system. They sing in four-part harmony as they march through the townships and increase the strength of their voice with each school they pass. White members of the South African Police blitz the students without warning as they congregate at a public park. Employing everything from tear gas to live bullets and military vehicles, the police leave 200 students dead and hundreds injured.
 
Doctor Arthur Mcunu, whose best friend dies in his arms a few days after the massacre, is among the survivors of these attacks.
 
In Zulu Chest Cutter, Dr. Mcunu grows up in South Africa during the height of Apartheid resistance. His story begins with family. Sibusiso (Dr. Mcunu's Zulu name, which means "blessing") is raised in a two-bedroom house with eighteen of his relatives, comprising four generations. Space and finances are tight, but his colorful family thrives on discipline, spiritual solidarity, and compassion. They are unified in their struggle and their shared values expressed in story, song, and the will to survive.
 
Armed with his mother's courage and determination, his grandmother's wisdom and resilience and his grandfather's unwavering spirit, Sibusiso overcomes astonishing obstacles. He out maneuvers terrorizing circumstances and persists in spite of harsh and unjust treatment with an extraordinary blend of commitment, sensitivity, and humor.
 
A tragedy within his family inspires Sibisiso to seek out his destiny as a physician. After several heartrending setbacks, he emigrates from the poverty, violence, and oppression of his homeland to complete his education and study medicine in America, where he ultimately finds success and fulfillment as a heart surgeon - a Zulu Chest Cutter!