Clark’s 27th Annual MLK Celebration will feature a talk by author/activist Kevin Powell. Powell will deliver “From Rosa Parks to Barack Obama: Civil Rights in America,” at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 24, in Tilton Hall, 2nd floor of the Higgins University Center.
An acclaimed community activist and award-winning writer, Powell is the author or editor of 11 books, including his newest title “Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan, and The Ghost of Dr. King: And Other Blogs and Essays,” a collection examining American leadership, politics, and social issues including gender violence, immigration, and equality for all Americans, due out this month. Powell’s essays have appeared in many leading magazines, including Newsweek, Essence, Ebony, Esquire, and Rolling Stone.
Powell has engaged with a wide variety of concerns, including voter registration, Hurricane Katrina relief, education, the environment, eradicating poverty, and support for post-earthquake Haiti. Powell has appeared on many television and radio programs including Oprah — 0where he was a part of the national conversation on domestic violence and how men can help end the assault on women and girls.
Powell is not only a writer and activist, but also a business owner with interests and ventures in entertainment, sports, and community development. A proud, longtime resident of Brooklyn, Kevin Powell was a 2008 and 2010 Democratic candidate for Congress in his district. This year, Powell is co-founding a new national organization, BK Nation, which will focus on four major projects for the next several years: education, job creation and small business development, civic engagement, and health and wellness.
Powell appeared in the first season of MTV‘s reality television series, The Real World: New York in 1992. He was the oldest member of “The Real World” cast. From 1992 to 1996, he was a senior writer for Vibe magazine.
This event is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Office of the President, the Martin Luther King Celebration/Black History Month Committee, the Dean of the College, and the Office of Intercultural Affairs. For more information, call (508) 793-7320.