Wednesday, January 28, 2004
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Wednesday, January 28, 2004 |
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Clayton State plans four Black History Month events An addendum to the single most famous public address of the 20th century, a rapper turned businessman, two heroic Tuskegee Airmen, and a senior vice president of Wachovia Bank will be featured at Clayton College and State University’s 2004 Black History Month Events, sponsored by the University's Lyceum program and the Office of Diversity Services. All four programs in Clayton State’s Black History Month schedule are free and open to the public. Although February is Black History Month, Clayton State will get a jump on the month on Tuesday, Jan. 27, when T. Leon Williams presents his program, “Shattered Dreams” at noon in room 14 of the University’s Lecture Hall. Williams, who assumes the persona of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will give one possible answer to the question, “What would Dr. Martin Luther King say to us today if he could create an addendum to his famous ‘I Have a Dream’ address?” “Who Were the Tuskegee Airmen?” is the title of the Tuesday, Feb. 4 lecture by Tuskegee Airmen Val Archer and Wilbur G. Mason. Archer and Mason's address will be held in the University's Lecture Hall at noon. Briefly, to answer the question posed by the title of their lecture, on July 19, 1941, the Army Air Force began a program in Alabama to train black Americans as military pilots. Primary flight training was conducted by the Division of Aeronautics of Tuskegee Institute. The first classes of Tuskegee airmen were trained to be fighter pilots for the famous 99th Fighter Squadron, slated for combat duty in North Africa. Additional pilots were assigned to the 332d Fighter Group, which flew combat along with the 99th Squadron from bases in Italy. By the end of the war, 992 men had graduated from pilot training at Tuskegee, 450 of whom were sent overseas for combat assignment. Ben Boswell, Jr., senior vice president of Community Affairs for Wachovia Bank will be the guest lecturer on Thursday, Feb. 12. Boswell will be speaking on “Career Opportunities - What Makes a Better You.” Boswell's address will also be in the Lecture Hall, starting at noon. Finally, rapper turned businessman Chuck D will be featured in “An Evening With Chuck D” on Wednesday, Feb. 18. The leader and co-founder of the rap group Public Enemy, his success in that genre opened doors for Chuck D to deliver his message through a number of different mediums, extending his reach to all segments of the population. He has hosted his own segment on the Fox News Channel and published a best-selling autobiography, Fight The Power. He served as national spokesperson for Rock The Vote, the National Urban League, and the National Alliance of African American Athletes, and appeared in public service announcements for HBO's campaign for national peace and the Partnership for the Drug Free America. He is also a regular guest on numerous television shows including Nightline and Politically Incorrect. “An Evening With Chuck D” will run from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. and will be held in the University's Athletics and Fitness Center.
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