AND JUSTICE FOR ALL
TUESDAY, February 3, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
Free. Reservations Required. Please call 215.409.6700 or order online.
Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach
Kirby Auditorium
National Constitution Center
Independence Mall
525 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA
Important Update: Space will be limited in the garage at the National Constitution Center. We recommend that you park at the Independence Visitor's Center lot located between Market and Arch on 6th Street.
As part of the National Constitution Center’s programming in support of the world debut of the America I AM: The African American Imprint exhibition, Mary Frances Berry joins us to tell the story of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, through its extraordinary fifty years at the heart of the civil rights movement and the struggle for justice in America.
Berry tells of the Commission’s founding in 1957 by President Eisenhower, in response to burgeoning civil rights protests and how it was designed to be an independent bipartisan Federal agency—made up of six members, with no more than three from one political party, free of interference from Congress and presidents—beholden to no government body, with full subpoena power, and free to decide what it would investigate and report on. Berry writes that the Commission, rather than producing reports that would gather dust on the shelves, began to hold hearings even as it was under attack from Southern segregationists. She also writes about how the Commission’s hearings and reports helped the nonviolent protest movement prick the conscience of the nation then on the road to dismantling segregation, beginning with the battles in Montgomery and Little Rock, the sit-ins and freedom rides and the March on Washington.
Mary Frances Berry received bachelor's and master's degrees at Howard University, a doctorate in history from the University of Michigan, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School. She was the chairperson for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights for more than a decade and author of My Face Is Black Is True. Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought at the University of Pennsylvania and lives in Washington, D.C.
Romona Riscoe Benson moderates. She is President and CEO of the African American Museum in Philadelphia, since 2005. Benson held senior management positions with several non-profits, including the Multicultural Affairs Congress, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau and the New Jersey State Aquarium. Benson received her B.A. in Administration from Antioch University. She is also President of Riscoe & Associates, Inc.
A book sale and signing will follow the program courtesy of Joseph Fox Bookshop. Parking for this event is available for $7.00 at the National Constitution Center garage located at the rear of the building on Race Street between 5th and 6th Streets. Parking availability is subject to change, so please call the ConstitutionCenter on the day of the program or check our web site for more information. Please also see our directions by public transportation.
For reservations please call 215.409.6700 or order online. Programs at the National Constitution Center begin promptly and latecomers may not be admitted to the program. Please note that this program is subject to change.
The National Constitution Center is hosting the world debut of America I AM: The African American Imprint, celebrating nearly 500 years of African American contributions to this country. The exhibition presents a historical continuum of pivotal moments in courage, conviction, and creativity that solidifies the undeniable imprint of African Americans across the nation and around the world. Featuring more than 200 artifacts culled from every period of U.S. history, the exhibit will include objects, texts, religion, music, narration, and media. An interactive component of the exhibition will allow visitors to leave their own video “imprints,” and this collection will grow throughout the life of the exhibition with the potential to become the largest recorded oral history project in U.S. history. The exhibition is developed in partnership with Tavis Smiley, and organized by Cincinnati Museum Center and Arts and Exhibitions International (AEI).
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And Justice For All