Angela Davis: Arts, Education, Activism (February 7th, Eastern Kentucky University)

(I saw Angela Davis in dialogue with Patricia Hill Collins a couple of years back--it was an inspiring and educational dialogue that left me wanting to find out more about what they discussed and wanting to get actively involved in the issues they discussed. A simple investigation into her life will reveal a courageous, honest woman who put her life and career on the line to speak truth to power--a role model that is much needed these days.)



WHAT:
Angela Davis To Speak

TOPIC:
"Angela Davis: Arts, Education, Activism: Beyond Rhetoric to Action"

WHEN:
7:30 p.m. Tuesday
February 7

WHERE:
Student Services Building Auditorium
Eastern Kentucky University
Richmond

DETAILS:
As part of the EKU Chautauqua Lecture Series, Angela Davis will speak about her life of activism including her most recent work on exposing racism in the U.S. prison system. A book signing and reception will follow her speech.

Davis is known for her activism in the areas of racial and gender equality during the 1960s and 1970s. The Birmingham, Ala., native grew up in a place and time where she was directly affected by the "humiliations of racial segregation."

She is a former member of the U.S. Communist Party and ran for vice president twice representing the party. She is also associated with the Black Panther Party, which was formed in 1966 "to protect local communities from police brutality and racism."

Davis appeared on the FBI's Most Wanted List in 1970 "after a gun legally registered to her was used in an attempted courtroom escape in which a judge and three others were killed."

After running from police for two months, she was captured, tried and acquitted of all charges of conspiracy, kidnapping and homicide.

She was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1979 and is the co-founder of the National Alliance Against Racism and Political Repression. She is also the author of several books, including an upcoming publication, "Punishment and Democracy: Essays on the Prison Industrial Complex."

Davis is Presidential Chair and professor in the History of Consciousness Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She now focuses her activism on the state of U.S. prisons and the death penalty.

"She's a voice that students should hear because she will say things that they will not be accustomed to hearing," said Dr. Bruce MacLaren, program director of the Chautauqua series. "She represents the theme of the series of lectures this year because she's questing for social justice, prison reform, equality of treatment of all people and to create a world that is kinder and gentler."

SPONSORS:
EKU Chautauqua Lecture Series