Activist, writer and entrepreneur Kevin Powell will give the 32nd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Lecture at UNC-Chapel Hill at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 22, in the Student Union.
The event, which is free, will begin with a scholarship presentation.
Powell has published 11 books, including his latest collection of political and pop culture writings, “Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan, and The Ghost of Dr. King: Blogs and Essays.” Powell’s writing has also been published in publications such as Esquire, Newsweek, The Washington Post, Essence, Rolling Stone, The Amsterdam News and Vibe. He blogs for The Huffington Post, The Guardian, Ebony.com, The Daily Kos and other outlets. Powell is a 2012-2013 visiting scholar at Virginia State University.
Powell’s lecture is part of a week of activities during the 2013 UNC-Chapel Hill MLK Celebration. The activities start at 6 p.m. Sunday (Jan. 20) with the 28th annual University/Community Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Banquet.
The banquet’s keynote speaker is Judge Henry Frye, the first African American to be elected to the N.C. House of Representatives in the 20th Century. Frye served in the House for 12 years before serving a two-year term in the N.C. Senate. In 1983, Frye became the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court of North Carolina. Former Gov. Jim Hunt appointed Frye to serve as chief justice of the Supreme Court in September 1999.
Read more about the week’s events.
Published January 14, 2013.