I've posted a couple of items in the past about the movement to stop the white corporate takeover of the Lorraine Motel Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. The tireless work of local activists, civil rights veterans, and area civil rights groups has led to the formation of the Lorraine Motel Civil Rights Museum Community Oversight Committee, which may now be able to influence the board selection process for the museum. One of the groups active in this effort, the Arkansas Delta Truth and Justice Center, is building support for nominees to the board who are historians of the Civil Rights Movement and/or participants in it, past and present.
For more information, also see:
- Gary Younge, "Thieves of Black History" (The Nation)
- The Honorable D'Army Bailey, "The Troubled Birth of the National Civil Rights Museum" (Black Agenda Report)
- Interview with The Honorable D'Army Bailey (Democracy Now!)
The following is information from the ADTJC about the new nominees to the Lorraine Motel Civil Rights Museum board and how you can show your support for them.
From: Arkansas Delta Truth and Justice Center
The Arkansas Delta Truth and Justice Center commends the nominations of civil rights movement living legend Reverend C.T. Vivian and other acclaimed civil rights movement veterans, historians, and public servants to serve on the board of the National Civil Rights Museum.
The Lorraine Motel Civil Rights Museum Community Oversight Committee, a community activist organization, has nominated Reverend Vivian and other accomplished individuals including among others:
Bill Lucy
- International Secretary-Treasurer of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
- highest ranking African American in Labor movement
- native of Memphis
TN State Rep. Barbara Cooper
- Chair of TN Black Caucus
James O. Jones
- former Arkansas Director of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) civil rights organization
Jimmie Travis
- Chairman of Board Veterans of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement
Hollis Watkins
- life long civil rights activist
- founder of Southern Echo human rights organization
Rev. Charles Sherrod
- Albany, Georgia movement leader
- life long civil rights activist
Dr. Wesley Hogan
- critically acclaimed civil rights historian and author
Muriel Tillinghast
- Civil Rights Movement veteran (D.C., Maryland, Mississippi, and New York)
- Business Manager
- Education Administrator
Ash-Lee Henderson
- East Tennessee State University student leader
- Human rights activist
- Leader in justice for civil rights martyrs movement
Rev. Dr. Ruben Green
- leading theologian and educator
- Pastor of Central Baptist Church in Memphis
- Professor at LeMoyne Owen College
Carlissia Graham
- University of Memphis student leader
- Youth activist
- Editor of several African-American publications
Other nominees submitted by various sources include:
Dr. Curtis Austin
- movement historian and author
- Director, Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage, University of Southern Mississippi
Dr. Cleveland Sellers
- movement veteran and author
- Director, African-American Studies, University of South Carolina
Information on the nominees named above and the names of several additional nominees and their information can be obtained from the Arkansas Delta Truth and Justice Center (Ark_Delta_Truth_and_Justice_Ctr at yahoo dot com) and other sources.
We look forward to the current board of the museum considering and, hopefully, taking positive action on these outstanding nominees for membership on the board.
You may send a message of support for the nominees to: "Attention of Nominating Committee"
- email: aclark at civilrightsmuseum dot org,
- fax: (901) 521-9740, or
- Street address: 450 Mulberry, Memphis, TN 38103
You may also attend the Board Meeting on Thursday, February 21, at 4 p.m. at the museum, during which voting will occur on memberships, to show your support.
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