The Civil Rights Conference at the University of Tennessee at Martin marks its 25th year of providing notable guest speakers, panels and activities promoting civil rights and equality.
The theme for this year’s celebration is “Strength, Courage and Wisdom: Lessons for the Journey Toward Justice.”
Dr. Henri Giles, assistant professor of African American studies, is the coordinator for this annual event. She said that for the university to host this event for a quarter-century is meaningful.
“For it to have lasted 25 years says something about the dedication of this university to these types of issues,” she said. “It has certainly changed over the years, but it has kept its objective and main focus: to enlighten people and inform people about different issues that deal with civil rights, equity and justice.”
Giles added that UT Martin is the only university in the United States to dedicate a month to a civil rights conference.
“There are certainly many other universities that have civil rights events or programs or maybe even conferences, but they don’t go on for a month,” she said. “That’s one of the things that we are proud of, that we can say that we have this very important conference that brings in voices from all over the country. It is a conference that touches on issues that impact our world today.”
This year’s conference features the following guest speakers:
• Charlayne Hunter-Gault, a journalist, activist and foreign correspondent who, with Hamilton Holmes, was the first African-American student to attend the University of Georgia in 1961.
• José Hernández, a current regent for the University of California who worked with farmworkers as a child and became an astronaut, serving as a mission specialist onboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 2009.
• Michael Eric Dyson, a social justice activist and seven-time New York Times bestselling author. He has written 25 books and taught at some of the nation’s most distinguished universities. Also a Baptist minister, Dyson is a professor in the College of Arts and Science and in the Divinity School at Vanderbilt University. He has been a commentator for National Public Radio, MSNBC and CNN, and was a speaker at the 2018 funeral for Aretha Franklin.
“These are three powerhouse speakers,” Giles said. “Charlayne Hunter-Gault definitely has her place in history. She was one of two students at the time who were admitted into the University of Georgia. It’s really hard for our young people to wrap their minds around the fact that there was a time when Black people were not admitted to universities and colleges around the country.
“Since then, she has built a stellar career as an award-winning journalist. She has been a national foreign correspondent and has done incredible work.”
Giles said that Hernández will bring a story of overcoming obstacles to reach for the stars.
“He is an astronaut, but his story is so fascinating because he is the son of migrant workers who would come to this country from Mexico doing seasonal work in California,” she said. “They picked produce to get money to live. He had very humble beginnings, but always had this dream as a boy who was fascinated by the stars in the sky and wanted to become an astronaut.
“He worked really hard. We will hear his story about how he became an astronaut, and leading up to his speech, we will show the film ‘A Million Miles Away,’ which is based on his life. He has also done incredible work as a researcher developing systems to help detect breast cancer.”
Giles said that Dyson brings an eclectic background as a journalist, preacher, author and professor.
“He has written more than 20 books,” Giles said. “He has made his voice known on different networks and cable channels, speaking about issues that involve equity and justice and the issues that concern groups that have received inequitable treatment.
“Michael Eric Dyson is a truth-teller; he tells it like it is and does not pull any punches. We will be in for a treat to hear him. He has a poetic way of speaking sometimes when he draws comparisons or makes descriptions of things going on in our world.”
Giles said the speakers bring a wide variety of backgrounds and stories to the Civil Rights Conference.
“The hope is that with these different backgrounds that it will spark the interest of our students in social justice or the law,” she said. “There might be a STEM (science-technology-engineering-mathematics) student wanting to go into space or someone with the hope of becoming a writer or an academic.”
Giles added that some events came from ideas submitted by UT Martin students, including some of the panel discussions.
“I am so happy to have their involvement,” she said. “One of those events is called ‘Behind the Scenes: Black Students Navigating a PWI campus.’ That will be a panel of students and alumni talking about some of the challenges and some of the benefits of attending a predominantly white institution.”
Giles said she would define a predominantly white institution (PWI) as one that is not recognized as a historically Black college or university, which is identified by the abbreviation HBCU.
The Night of Dance on Feb. 10 will feature guest drummer Jorge Félix, the stepfather of a UTM student, Yosli Herrera, who is a first-year performing and theatre arts major from Houston, Texas.
“He heard about the Night of Dance, and his daughter is participating, and he wanted to participate as a guest drummer,” Giles said. “Our students are incredible; they have been working really hard with Sarah McCormick, professor of dance, on their presentation for that night.”
The art exhibition held Feb. 10-28 features work by UTM students that will be showcased in the hallway near the Nunnelly Welcome Center in the Boling University Center. An awards ceremony for the exhibition will be held at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 19, in Watkins Auditorium.
“Their works will be based on the conference theme, which is ‘Strength, Courage and Wisdom: Lessons for the Journey Toward Justice,’” Giles said.
The schedule of events for the 2025 Civil Rights Conference includes:
• CRC: From Then to Now, a panel discussion with original and subsequent UTM Civil Rights Conference organizers to discuss the purpose and mission of the event; 6 p.m., Monday, Feb. 3, Watkins Auditorium, Boling University Center.
• Charlayne Hunter-Gault, guest speaker; 6 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 4, Watkins Auditorium.
• Financial Literacy Workshop; 4 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 5, Room 206 Boling University Center.
• “A Million Miles Away,” a screening of the 2023 film about the life of guest speaker José Hernández; 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 9, Watkins Auditorium.
• Strength, Courage and Wisdom art exhibition; artwork created by students in the Department of Visual and Theatre Arts; Monday, Feb. 10, Boling University Center Welcome Center hallway.
• Night of Dance; 7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 10, Watkins Auditorium.
• José Hernández, guest speaker, 6 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 11, Watkins Auditorium.
• “Behind the Scenes: Black Students Navigating a PWI Campus;” 6 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 13, Watkins Auditorium. Student-led session highlighting the benefits and challenges of attending a predominantly white institution.
• Michael Eric Dyson, guest speaker; 6 p.m., Monday, Feb. 17, Watkins Auditorium.
• “International Studies: Global Lessons for Understanding Each Other;” 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 19.UTM scholars discuss lessons learned about justice and equity while studying abroad.
• Student art awards, Strength, Courage and Wisdom art exhibition; 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 19, Watkins Auditorium.
• Weakley County Reconciliation Project: Honest Conversations; 6 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 20, Room 206 Boling University Center.
• “Minorities in Meteorology;” 6 p.m., Monday, Feb. 24, Room 111 Boling University Center, student-led discussion of career expectations and challenges for people of color in meteorology.
• “Assessing the Changes at Hand;” 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25, Watkins Auditorium, panel discussion on cultural and social shifts for Americans.
All events are free and open to the public.
For more information about the Civil Rights Conference, visit www.utm.edu/visit-ut-martin/civil-rights.php.
PHOTO: Guest speakers at this year’s Civil Rights Conference are (l-r) Charlayne Hunter-Gault, José Hernández and Michael Eric Dyson.
