January 20, 2006 — The University of Virginia's Office of African-American Affairs has planned several events – one in January and nine in February – to commemorate the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Black History Month. The public is invited to these events, which are free of charge. On Tuesday, Jan. 24, civil rights leader Rev. Dr. Paul Brinson will give the annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration speech. As a native of Georgia and a colleague of King, John Lewis, Julian Bond and others who led the civil rights movement in Georgia and across the South, Brinson is a witness to King’s legacy.

Brinson was active in the student movement involved with sit-ins and other acts of civil disobedience. He was licensed and ordained at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta by co-pastors Martin Luther King Sr. and Martin Luther King Jr. Brinson served as pastor at several Baptist churches and was a longtime leader in the American Baptist Church, including terms as associate director and associate general secretary for World Mission Support until his retirement in 2004. Sponsored by the Office of African-American Affairs, the lecture will be delivered in the Special Collections Library Auditorium at 7 p.m.

BLACK HISTORY MONTH EVENTS 2006

February 2
“State of the Office of African-American Affairs”
Featuring M. Rick Turner, dean of the Office of African-American Affairs
Rotunda, Dome Room, 7 p.m

February 6
Walter Ridley Lecture Series: “No Child Left Behind”
Featuring Dr. Henry Johnson, Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education
Rotunda Dome Room, 4 p.m.
Sponsors: Curry School of Education, Vice President and Chief Officer for Diversity and Equity, Walter Ridley Fellowship

February 7
Representations in Black Film Series: “Amandla! A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony”
Kaleidoscope in Newcomb Hall, 7 p.m.
Amandla! won both the Documentary Audience Award and the Freedom of Expression Award at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. Discussion led Melvin L. Butler, U.Va. assistant professor of music
Sponsors: OAAA, Kaleidoscope Center for Cultural Fluency

February 9
Black History Month Keynote Address: “Black Intellectual Entrepreneurship”
Dr. Randal  Pinkett, Rhodes Scholar, president  & CEO of BCT Partners, Donald Trump’s current apprentice. This speaker will discuss his research on “Bridging the Digital Divide.”
Old Cabell Hall, 7 p.m.
Sponsor: OAAA, Vice President for Student Affairs, Vice President and Chief Officer for Diversity and Equity, Black Student Alliance

February 16
Seminar: “Keeping it Rich”
Sakina Spruell-Cole, Editor-at-Large: Black Enterprise Magazine
Newcomb Hall Ballroom, 7 p.m.
“Keeping it Rich” is an interactive discussion of money and how it works. Spruell-Cole, who specializes in personal finance and entrepreneurship, will teach the principles of building wealth.

February 21
Representations in Black Film Series: “Malcolm X:  Make it Plain”
Discussion led by Corey Walker, U.Va. assistant professor of religious studies
Kaleidoscope in Newcomb Hall, 7 p.m.
Political philosopher and visionary, husband and father, dynamic orator and militant minister. In his lifetime, Malcolm X was many men. Finally, he became El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, an internationally recognized leader and advocate for oppressed peoples. He was loved and despised, revered and feared — until an assassin’s bullet cut him down at age 39.

February 23
Lecture: “A Step Forward — Black Women in the Sciences”
Featuring Dr. Wendi El-Amin, U.Va. assistant professor of family medicine
Maury Hall, Room 209, 7 p.m.
Black women continue to make advances in the science profession(s) and their economic, social and political impact on our contemporary society cannot be ignored. Issues pertaining to education and professional development will be discussed.

February 27
Lecture: “Inciting the Counter-Revolution: Race and Black Neo-conservatism in the Post-Civil Rights Era”
LaTasha Levy, former director of Luther P. Jackson Black Cultural Center
Maury Hall, Room 209, 7 p.m.
Black neo-conservatism is one of the most contested political ideologies of the post-civil rights era.  This ideology and its alternative approach to racial politics and identity in the United States are explored.

February 28
Representations in Black Film Series: “Soundz of Spirit”
Discussion led by Dion W. Lewis, director of the Luther P. Jackson Black Cultural Center, and assistant dean, OAAA
Kaleidoscope in Newcomb Hall, 7 p.m.
Venturing into uncharted territory, Soundz of Spirit draws connections between the creative freedom and the spiritual outlet that the hip-hop culture provides for the current generation.