BIRMINGHAM, AL – Bill Cosby, chair of Birmingham’s 50th Anniversary of the 1963 Birmingham Civil Rights Movement Committtee will host his own summit with education and business leaders Saturday, Sept. 14, as part of Empowerment Week’s commemoration events.
Cosby comes with a message of hope and inspiration through “The Changing Lives Education & Entrepreneurial Summit With Bill Cosby & Friends” on Saturday, September 14, 2013 at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center Complex South Exhibition Hall located 2100 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. North, Birmingham, AL 35203 from 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m.
The struggles that too place during the 1963 Birmingham Civil Rights Movement pricked the world’s conscience and opened its eyes to the hatred and humiliation that African Americans experienced on a daily basis. Media images and stories of police dogs unleashed on men, women and children protesting for theiir rights and of fire hoses that could peel bark off trees tossing children in the air created sympathy for these nonviolent Foot Soldiers and their plight. Also, the city, nation and world were horrified when a bomb blast at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church on Sunday, September 15, 1963, killed four young girls.
For these very reasons, Cosby said it was important for him to lend his name and celebrity to this year’s commemoration of those historic events and their world-changing power.
“I am proud to be a Chair of the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 Birmingham Civil Rights Movement because no one should ever forget those who paved the way for us to have a free education and be given the same privileges to become successful entrepreneurs. We have a moral and societal obligation to give our young people the opportunity to become productive human beings. I am elated that some of my closest friends will take part in this wonderful discussion,” Cosby said of his summit.
As an advocate for good parenting, education and entrepreneurship, Cosby said he hopes that his influence will turn on a light blub that in keeping with his message to the Black community, particularly in his book, “Come On People.” He hopes to spur productive dialogue at the summit that will help African Americans today pick up the Movement where it left off.
“We can’t move 50 years forward until we come up with a solution to solve our declining education system and come up with a formula to prevent our Black Businesses from becoming extinct,” says Cosby, who has an ED.D. In Education
“The Civil Rights 50TH Anniversary is an opportunity to showcase the city 50 years forward,” said Mayor William A. Bell, Sr. “I want to thank Bill Cosby, for his leadership, for partnering with the City of Birmingham and giving us permission to use his celebrity in order to garner national exposure. Not just for the celebration of the heritage we have in this great city but to making life better in Birmingham,” states Mayor Bell.
The entertainer has invited some of his closest friends to take part in his panel discussion. They include:
- Dr. Mary Frances Berry, Educator and Historian University of Pennsylvania;
- Dr. Bob Moses, Civil Rights Leader, Educator and Founder of the Algebra Project;
- Michelle Rhee, CEO and Founder Studentsfirst.org;
- Tempsett Bledsoe, Actress The Cosby Show & Guys With Kids;
- Jasmine Guy, Actress A Different World;
- Darryl M. Bell, Actor A Different World;
- Rick C. Wade, Former Obama Campaign Adviser & Commerce Department Senior Adviser; and
- Benjamin Crump, Attorney For Trayvon Martin’s Family.
Moderating this historic event will be Joy-Ann Reid, Managing Editor TheGrio.com and MSNBC on-air contributor.
