Racial Legacies lecture honors best practice recipients

February 15, 2005

During a town hall meeting, Racial Legacies and Learning XIII: How To Talk About Race, seven local organizations will be recognized as Best Practice recipients for their efforts in developing programs which foster good race relations.

Those organizations are: African American Theatre Company of Butler County, Butler Metropolitan Housing Authority, Greater Miami Valley YMCA, Greater Hamilton Civic Theatre, Hamilton High School’s True Blue Step Team and its African American Read-In, Miami University Hamilton Office of Admission and Financial Aid, Miami University Hamilton’s Minority Action Committee, and Reflection 4 Life.

According to Jimmie Jones, co chair of the Racial Legacies Committee and director of Miami Hamilton’s Multicultural Center, “These local organizations and businesses strive to examine their own biases; work to overcome them; set positive examples for their family, friends, and co-workers; work for tolerance; and take leadership roles against hate and injustice.”

The town meeting to be held this Thursday, February 17, begins at 7:00 p.m. in Parrish Auditorium, features keynote speaker Dr. Maulana Karenga. Widely known as the creator of Kwanzaa, Karenga studies the plight of urban African American youth as professor in the Department of Black Studies at California State University in Long Beach. He also is an author of numerous scholarly articles and 12 books.

“Statistics throughout the United States clearly indicate the major problem with urban violence and the premature death of many young African Americans. During the town hall meeting, Karenga will not only discuss the problem, but offer some solutions,” Jones added.

Karenga will welcome M. K. Asante, Jr., to discuss the issue from the perspective of the younger generation. At age 23, Asante, Jr. is an award-winning author and filmmaker. His first book, a collection of poems entitled Like Water Running Off My Back, received the American Academy of Poets Jean Corrie Prize in 2002. He wrote the screenplay for the soon-to-be released film 500 Years Later, a film by Owen ‘Alik Shahadah.

A FREE screening will be shown Friday, February 18, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Harry T. Wilks Conference Center.