[2 articles] Human rights activist Angela Davis met with protests
http://www.themaneater.com/stories/2009/4/10/human-rights-activist-angela-davis-met-protests/ Angela Davis inspires people to amend, not overthrow institutions. By Krissy Tripp Published April 10, 2009 Flyers advertising human rights activist Angela Davis's trip campus lined the hallways, but next to -- or even stapled directly on top of -- those flyers, were protests. Davis spoke about issues she feels need to be challenged like capitalism, freedom, democracy, the prison system and the way people are treated. Her message was about change. She did not challenge people to get rid of these systems, but rather to look at them in a different light. Freshman Kiara Washington said she came because as a black woman on campus, she feels it's important to keep up with civil rights activists on campus. The Communist Party USA was there handing out pamphlets to the audience. Senior Nick Totten said he has no official affiliation with the party, but he was willing to help them spread the word. He also said the party wasn't there because of any affiliation with Davis; they simply thought it would be a good crowd to hand out flyers to. Davis explained how capitalism has damaged much of the world today, that it has become so ingrained in our society, it's hard to imagine a world without it. She said it's a matter of bringing wealth to few, but the result is pushing many into poverty. While she spoke against capitalism, she said she doesn't believe all capitalists are bad, and some have good intentions. "If we weren't so worried about saving capitalism," Davis said. "I mean, some people are, I'm really not that worried about saving capitalism, we could convert the automobile industry to produce green, energy efficient machines." History professor Jessie Sudholt was one of several non-students in the crowd. "I lived through another time with Angela Davis and I thought it might be interesting to see how she's evolved," Sudholt said. "Sometimes I agreed with her and many times I did not, but I always respect people who stand up for what they believe." Davis was sponsored by multiple student organizations, and paid, in part, by student fees. Freshman Brett Dinkins said he protested Davis speaking on campus because he said MU doesn't bring in a full spectrum of speakers. "I don't mind paying fees to bring in liberal speakers, but they're not bringing in a fair, unbiased spectrum of speakers," Dinkins said. "I'd like to see someone from the other side too." However, Dinkins also expressed disagreement with the extremity of her views. "The university should realize that many students on campus disagree with these views," he said. "It's not just because she's a liberal speaker, it's because she's a communist extremist." Sudholt didn't agree with the accusations written on the protest flyer and explained that at times, they were volatile. "Yeah, I remember that picture," she said looking at the mug shot. "She was never found guilty." Davis received applause after asking why we now assume education is a commodity to be purchased. "Education should be available to those who need it and want it," she said. In fact, Davis said we should educate prisoners instead of leaving them in prison because throwing criminals in prison only relieves us of finding a way to deal with the real problem. "The prison becomes a dumping ground for issues we are afraid to confront," she said. Davis ended her speech with advice on expanding concepts. "My advice is to be creative. Be innovative. Be bold," Davis said. "Do the thing your parents would not do or would not like, simply because as we get older, we become more cautious." -------- Angela Davis speaks about civil, human rights at MU http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2009/04/10/angela-davis-mu/ Friday, April 10, 2009 BY Vannah Shaw COLUMBIA A piece of textbook history stepped onto stage at Jesse Auditorium on Thursday night. Angela Davis activist, author, educator and philosopher spoke about civil and human rights in a democracy. "All of these are too often taken for granted," she said of civil rights. Obama's election did not do away with the need for civil rights, she said, a term that is often limited to represent oppression of only black Americans. "Civil Rights are extremely important," Davis said. "Having grown up in one of the most segregated cities in the country in the '50s, I know what it's like to achieve voting rights." Her Afro carried a bit more curl than the history books show, and this time the black was worn on a modernly designed blouse, decorated with sequins, instead of a leather jacket. But although she looked a little different from iconic photos of her in the '70s, Davis appeared just as passionate about the pursuit of equal rights for all. Davis is most well known for her stance as an activist with the Black Panther Party and for being on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted Fugitives" list for criminals. In 1970, a warrant was issued for her arrest after Jonathan Jackson killed a judge and wounded three in an attempt to have several prisoners released, including his brother George Jackson. Jonathan Jackson committed the crime with a weapon registered in Davis' name. Davis was acquitted on all accounts in 1972. MSA/GPC, the Black Programming Committee, the Legion of Black Collegians and Four Front brought Davis to MU. Shanetha Washington, senior president of the Black Programming Committee, said she thinks Davis was a good choice to come to MU because she is passionate about many topics, including race, class, gender and prison reform. "Basically, we chose her because we wanted to find somebody who would be relevant with different groups of students," Washington said. Davis used the 45 minutes until her cell phone rang to remind her to wrap it up to discuss unemployment, immigration and education. She said that not too long ago, it was easy to obtain a doctoral degree without paying tuition, and that education should be about people contributing their knowledge to society, not whether they can afford it, and that it should not be privatized. "The next you know, air will be private," she said. Michelle Gadbois, president of the Columbia School Board, asked Davis about the achievement gap in schools. Gadbois, who has seen Davis lecture three times, said she approved of Davis' advice that said we need to start over. As a history teacher, she said she admires Davis because she understands that addressing equality means discussing race, gender and other discrepancies in society. She also discussed the prison system and the changing statistics from 2007 that said one of every 100 people in the U.S. was under the control of a correctional facility; now the number is one in 31. She noted that statistics focused on men and whites, and that women of color are completely overlooked in the statistics. Brian Hamilton of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, one of the groups that helped bring Davis to MU, said her mention of statistics surprised him. He agreed with Davis that, in addition to the choice of prisons or the death penalty for offenders, punishment should also include healing for victims and true rehabilitation to avoid the repetition of offenses. "It's really about breaking these cycles," he said. Davis, who is known for her communist views, also spoke about capitalism in terms of rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Marriage has been about the distribution and accumulation of property, she said. It also was denied to slave and interracial couples, at one point. Davis exceeded her 45 minutes, explaining that the goals of all struggles have been about resistance. "But they're also about expanding the meaning of freedom," she said. "Freedom is not what we imagined 50 years ago." . --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Sixties-L" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
