2019 Conversation with Dr Angela Davis
The 2019 Conversation with Dr Angela Davis was an event hosted by the newly-formed Birmingham Committee for Truth and Reconciliation at Boutwell Auditorium on February 16, 2019. The event was organized as an alternative to the scheduled presentation of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute's "Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award".
Birmingham-born activist and scholar Angela Davis had been announced as the recipient of that award in October 2018, but the BCRI's board voted to withdraw the honor in January 2019. After a public outcry and resolutions of condemnation from Mayor Randall Woodfin and the Birmingham City Council, three members resigned from the board. The reduced board reversed itself again, but by then the evening event had already been planned at the Lyric Theatre.
Tickets for the event were distributed online without charge, and quickly sold-out, leading organizers to move the event to the larger public auditorium. The second ticket release also went quickly and Davis spoke to a capacity crowd. The main part of the program was a conversation between Davis and fellow Birmingham-born scholar Imani Perry.
Others in attendance included Linda Sarsour, an organizer of the "Women's March on Washington".
References
- Johnson, Roy S. (February 16, 2019) "With fires for resistance still burning, Angela Davis comes home." The Birmingham News
- Crain, Abbey (February 16, 2019) "'Resistance can be fun’: Angela Davis speaks in Alabama after award snub." The Birmingham News
- Johnson, Roy S. (February 18, 2019) "Inter-generational coalition that brought Angela Davis home is what city needs now." The Birmingham News
- Ramanathan, Lavanya (February 26, 2019) "At age 75, Angela Davis refuses to back down." The Washington Post / Al.com