For Immediate Release
Feb. 5, 2010
Contact: Anika Mitchell Perkins
(662) 3297124
aperkins@pa.muw.edu

MUW Gordy Honors Forum Series to feature Chuck D

COLUMBUS, Miss. – Chuck D, leader and co-founder of the legendary rap group Public Enemy, will be the guest speaker for the Gordy Honors Forum Series at Mississippi University for Women on Thursday, Feb. 11, at 6 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium, Parkinson Hall.
           
A political activist, publisher, radio host and producer, Chuck D is the author of two critically-acclaimed books and was named one of the 100 most influential black Americans by Ebony magazine.
             
He will discuss the impact of rap on modern culture, particularly African-American society, as part of his presentation titled “Race, Rap, and Reality.”
           
 “We are making an effort to make the forum series attractive to the campus community as well as the public,” said Dr. Tom Velek, director of the Ina E. Gordy Honors College. “He is a dynamic speaker and we are lucky to get him.”
           
Other Gordy Honors Forum Series programs include:

• The film “Why We Fight” on March 11
• Special guest Eric Alva will be the speaker on March 25. Alva is an Iraq war veteran and the first American wounded in the war. Awarded the Purple Heart, he will speak on “Ending `Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’”
• On April 8, Dr. William “Bill” Mayfield, dean of the School of Professional Studies at MUW, will present “Where Are We Going? An Analysis of Science Fiction Literature and Predictions of the Future.”
• The series concludes on April 22 with the Honors Research Symposium, a presentation of undergraduate research completed by seniors in the Gordy Honors College.

All presentations are at 6 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium. For more information, contact Velek at tvelek@muw.edu or (662) 241-6850.