50th Anniversary of the March on Washington
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PANEL DISCUSSION | EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION
The children’s defense fund coined the phrase the “cradle to prison pipeline”. Author Michele Alexander referred to it as “the new Jim Crow”. Whatever you call it, CFSCHRL founder and civil rights lawyer Van White, observed that men of color often give up or say “f@#k it” when confronted with the realities of racial profiling and disparate sentencing. Listen and learn from a panel of experts (Bruce Alexander, commissioner of schools Akron, Ohio; Christi Griffin, esq. Of the ethics project; Sheila a. Bedi, associate clinical professor, NW University school of law.) On proven strategies for dismantling the cradle to prison pipeline and how we can best bring hope to the young men and women of color who are caught up in the strong current within the pipeline.
PANEL DISCUSSION | HERMITAGE
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION
One thing is very clear; the leaders of the 1960s civil rights movement knew how to utilize the media to get their message across. Nightly television images of peaceful protesters running from dogs and firehouses; horrific still pictures of bombed out churches and bloodied freedom riders, all had an impact on shaping public opinion. With all of today’s available electronic, print and digital media, you’d think we’d have an easier time getting our message out? Instead, it appears that we only occasionally engage the media when were in the midst of a crisis or controversy. But what is our message throughout the balance of the year or decade? If you listen to the radio or watch music videos, we are now the ones who are generating violent and counterproductive images. Our panel of media experts, including Professor John Youngblood (professors of communication at Suny Potsdam) and Dr. Elijah Foulk, will lead a lively an engaging discussion around media, messaging, and the movement.
PANEL DISCUSSION | GRAND BALLROOM
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION
If the last fifty years have taught us one thing… it is this. Civil rights laws, regulations, and court cases alone cannot create the sustainable political and economic progress that is needed to “free” the thousands of Americans who continue to suffer civil and economic injustices. Sustainable and substantial progress will only occur through effective leadership – political as well as economic leadership. We’ve assembled a panel of business and political leaders who will discuss how they took the initiative and created their own business or grabbed the reigns of political leadership in their communities. Included among the panelist are the Honorable Mayor William A. Johnson Jr., (the first African American Mayor of Rochester New York); successful entrepreneur William A. Thurman of Sunbelt Soft Drinks; and George Moses (Executive Director of the North East Development Corporation). If you’ve ever thought about running for office or running your own business, now is the time for you to be still and listen to the insightful and inspiring stories of these three panelist.
STUDENT SPEAK OUT | GRAND BALLROOM
Through the use of the world wide-wide web, students from Montgomery, Alabama (joined by students from Tangipahoa Parish in Louisiana) will become full participants at the conference. Initially, they will participate by being panel members themselves. Then they will observe and ask questions of other panelist later on during the conference.
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION
Three students from Jefferson Davis high school (in historic Montgomery, Alabama) and three students from Tangipahoa Parish in Louisiana will discuss (from their perspective as youth and students) how they view the history of civil rights in the United States and how they see their lives impacted by that struggle today.