Charles Ogletree, Documentary Film to Highlight Duke's 2004 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration

DURHAM, N.C. -- A keynote speech by Harvard Law School professor Charles Ogletree and a showing of a documentary film on the history of race relations in Durham are part of a week-long slate of events marking Duke University's 15th annual celebration of the Rev. Martin Luther King's life.

The Jan. 14-22 events, which are free and open to the public, remember King and his commitment to education as a vital instrument for achieving social justice, said Willie James Jennings, senior associate dean for academic programs at Duke Divinity School and chair of the university's 2004 King commemoration committee.

"The radical moral vision and social activism of Martin Luther King Jr. sought to alter people's attitudes and prepare them for 'the new order,'" Jennings said. "This was and continues to be the province of education."

The mission of this year's commemoration at Duke is summed up in its title, "Educating for Moral Leadership: Milestones in Intellectual Courage," Jennings said. "Due to its tremendous value and potential, equal access to education remains a longstanding goal."

Events scheduled for the 2004 King commemoration include:

-- A campus-wide candlelight vigil service, noon Jan. 16, Duke Chapel;

-- "Sites and Signs," an original musical production by Duke Health Systems employees, 8 p.m. Jan. 16, Carolina Theatre;

-- "Move On Up A Little Higher: Sermons and Songs by Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahalia Jackson," performed by student cultural groups and featuring Brooklyn hip-hop artist Talib Kweli, 7 p.m. Jan. 19, Reynolds Theater;

-- "Reflections on Reparations," a discussion by historian John Hope Franklin, former U.S. ambassador to South Africa James Joseph and public policy professor William A. "Sandy" Darity Jr., 12:30 p.m. Jan. 19, Duke Law School.

Ogletree, the Jesse Climenko Professor of Law at Harvard and a prominent legal theorist, will give his keynote speech at 4 p.m. Jan. 18 in Duke Chapel. He is co-chair of the national Reparations Coordinating Committee, an organization calling for the U.S. government and private corporations to pay reparations to the descendants of slaves.

"Race matters. It mattered then, where there was that peculiar institution of slavery, and it matters now," Ogletree told the Chicago Tribune in a recent interview. "We have made a lot of progress, but we have a very long way to go. [Race] is the pink elephant that is in the room that no one wants to discuss, but it's not going away. It captures much of what we do."

Ogletree is also working alongside attorneys Johnnie Cochran, Dennis Sweet and Willie Gary in filing a federal lawsuit on behalf of more than 400 survivors and their descendants seeking reparations from the 1921 Tulsa, Okla., race riots.

Selected in 2000 by the National Law Journal as one of the "100 Most Influential Lawyers in America" and Savoy magazine in 2003 as one of the "100 Most Influential Blacks in America," Ogletree has served as a trustee on many boards and won numerous awards. The author of several books, Ogletree's latest, "All Deliberate Speed" (W.W. Norton & Company), looks at the Brown v. Board of Education case that's scheduled for release this spring.

"An Unlikely Friendship," a documentary about the surprising friendship that emerged in the early 1970s between Durham Ku Klux Klan leader C.P. Ellis and Ann Atwater, an African-American female activist, will be shown at 7 p.m. Jan. 16 in the Richard White Auditorium on Duke's East Campus.

Appointed to co-chair a community committee to resolve problems arising from the court-ordered desegregation of Durham's schools, Ellis and Atwater overcame their differences to form a deep relationship during the 10-day series of meetings. The story was the centerpiece of a 1996 book by Osha Gray Davidson, "The Best of Enemies."

"About 25 years ago, I met the two heroes of this film -- C.P. Ellis and Ann Atwater. Their story is one of redemption," author Studs Terkel said recently after seeing the film. "I think it's the most important documentary I've seen, and may be the most hopeful film in years."

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The following events, scheduled Jan. 14-22, are part of the 2004 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration at Duke. All events are free and open to the public.

Wednesday, Jan. 14

5 p.m. Candlelight Vigil Service. 5 p.m. Candlelight Vigil Service. Durham Regional Hospital, front entrance.

Thursday, Jan. 15

7:30 a.m. Prayer Breakfast. Durham Regional Hospital Auditorium.

6:30 p.m. Banquet.The Student National Medical Association will hold its annual banquet in Durham. Keynote speaker: Dr. Freeman Hrabowski. Durham Marriott Hotel. This will be a ticketed event; for information, contact Staci Arnold at arnol019@mc.duke.edu.

Friday, Jan. 16

Noon Candlelight Vigil Service. Messages will be offered by members of the Duke administration and campus religious community. A "Service of Lights" will be held at the end of the vigil, which is for all Duke employees, faculty and students. Duke Chapel.

2 p.m. Building Commemoration. Duke Clinical Research Institute will be officially commemorated. Speakers will include attorney, former N.C. House of Representatives speaker and Duke trustee Dan Blue; the DCRI Choral Group will also perform. DCRI Atrium.

7 p.m. Film. The film "An Unlikely Friendship" will be shown, followed by a discussion with the Chapel Hill filmmaker and community activists. A reception will precede the film. Richard White Auditorium, East Campus.

8 p.m. Employee Performance. "Sites and Signs," an original musical production by employees of the Duke Health Systems. Carolina Theatre in downtown Durham. This will be a ticketed event, with tickets distributed through the Duke Health System in early January.

Saturday, Jan. 17

11 a.m. Community Service Projects. Duke students will perform community service projects. Durham locations TBA.

Sunday, Jan. 18

11 a.m. Duke Chapel Service. Sermon by the Rev. Peter Gomes, Plummer Professor of Christian Morals and minister in Harvard University's Memorial Church. Duke Chapel.

4 p.m. 15th Annual Service of Celebration and Commemoration. Harvard Law School professor Charles Ogletree will be the keynote speaker. Duke Chapel. A reception, to be held in Schaefer Mall, upper level of the Bryan Center, will follow the service.

7:30 p.m. Film. The film "Legacy" will be shown in the Randolph Room of the Mary Lou Williams Center in the West Union Building.

Monday, Jan. 19

Martin Luther King Day is a university-wide holiday; no classes are held for students.

10 a.m. Film. The film "Legacy" will be shown in Von Canon Hall of the Bryan Center.

11 a.m. Student Interfaith Service. "Our Service" will include a student panel, performances and discussion. Location TBA.

12:30 p.m. Discussion. Historian John Hope Franklin, public policy professor William A. "Sandy" Darity Jr. and former U.S. ambassador to South Africa James Joseph will speak during a session titled "Reflections on Reparations." Duke Law School.

2 p.m. Student Panel. Graduate students will hold a panel and host a reception. Room 139 in the Social Sciences Building.

4 p.m. Discussion. Student organizations will sponsor a speakout, titled "Soapbox." Duke Chapel Quad, West Campus.

7 p.m. Cultural Performances. Student cultural groups will present "Move On Up a Little Higher: Sermons and Songs by Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahalia Jackson." Brooklyn hip-hop artist Talib Kweli will be the keynote speaker. Reynolds Theater in the Bryan Center.

Tuesday, Jan. 20

Noon. Employee Performance. Musical presentations from the original musical "Sites and Signs." Duke Hospital Cafeteria.

Noon. Brown Bag Lunch. Discussion about racial health disparities. Durham Regional Hospital, first-level classroom.

Wednesday, Jan. 21

Noon. Employee Performance. Musical presentations from the original musical "Sites and Signs." Duke Clinics Food Court.

Thursday, Jan. 22

8 a.m. Prayer Breakfast. The film "Durham's Black Wall Street" will be shown, followed by discussion. Duke Hospital, Room 2001.