Public Forum on Racial Justice, 9/21

From an announcement from the Richmond Peace Education Center (RPEC)

Date(s): Tue, Sep 21st, 2010

Time: 07:00 pm

Public Forum on Racial Justice to feature John Moeser and Anne Holton

On Tuesday, September 21 the Richmond Peace Education Center (RPEC) will sponsor a public forum entitled Overcoming Richmond’s Racial Divide, featuring presentations by Dr. John Moeser, former Virginia first lady Anne Holton and Iman Shabazz. The program will be held at 7 p.m. at Fifth Baptist Church of Richmond, 1415 West Cary Street. This event is free and open to the public. The panel will examine the continuing racial inequality in our metropolitan region and its political, social and economic causes. The program will include an opportunity for interaction among audience members, and a question and answer period.

Dr. John Moeser is a senior fellow at the University of Richmond’s Center for Civic Engagement and professor emeritus of urban studies and planning at Virginia Commonwealth University. His books and research examine post-World War II racial politics in Richmond, demographic trends in central Virginia, and urban-suburban relationships.

Anne Holton, Virginia’s former first lady, has been an outspoken proponent for racial justice since her middle school years, when she and her family personally took the lead in integrating Richmond Public Schools during the gubernatorial term of her father, Linwood Holton.

Iman Shabazz is vice-chair of the Richmond Peace Education Center’s board of directors and a staff member of The Balm in Gilead, a Richmond-based international organization that addresses African American and African health education and disease prevention. He is widely known to local theater-goers as an actor and spoken-word artist.

The evening’s program will be hosted by Dr. Renée Hill, Professor of Philosophy at Virginia State University and Dr. Adria Scharf, executive director of the Richmond Peace Education Center.

Overcoming Richmond’s Racial Divide will also serve as the opening event for RPEC’s four-part workshop series, Racial Justice in Richmond, scheduled on consecutive Tuesday evenings beginning October 5. Those workshops will take place at Richmond Friends Meeting, 4500 Kensington Avenue. The goal of the series is to build solidarity among individuals and organizations in greater Richmond as they work towards social and economic justice for all.

The public forum on September 21 is free and open to all. Enrollment in the October workshops will be limited to 25 participants and requires advance registration.

For more details about the public forum or information about the workshop series, email rpec@rpec.org or call the office of the Richmond Peace Education Center at 232-1002.

What: Public forum, Overcoming Richmond’s Racial Divide
Where: Fifth Baptist Church, 1415 W. Cary St, Richmond VA 23220
When: Tuesday, September 21, 7-9 p.m.
Who: Free and open to the public