Ahead of Her Time & Behind the Scenes: The Inspirational Life of Pauli Murray (1910 – 1985)
Thurs. Sept. 23 via Zoom | 5 pm – 6:30 pm | REGISTER FOR THIS FREE VIRTUAL EVENT HERE
A poet, writer, labor organizer, legal theorist, and the first African-American woman vested as an Episcopal priest. A life-long activist, who 15 years before Rosa Parks, refused to sit in the back of a bus – and who 20 years before the Greensboro Sit-Ins, organized sit-downs in Washington DC. She earned four advanced degrees and developed friendships with greats from WEB DuBois and Langston Hughes to Thurgood Marshall and Eleanor Roosevelt. She spent her life working to actualize her “single-minded intention of destroying Jim Crow,” and what she coined “Jane Crow.” And yet today, the inspirational life and empowering work of Pauli Murray remains largely unknown to many of our state’s K-12 students.
Join Carolina K-12 and the Orange County Human Relations Commission (HRC) on Thursday, Sept. 23 at 5 PM via Zoom as we elevate the incredible experiences and accomplishments of Rev. Pauli Murray, who was “both ahead of her time and behind the scenes (New Yorker).” This event will feature:
- Acclaimed performer and educator Kathryn Hunter Williams (Department of Dramatic Art, UNC-Chapel Hill; Company Artistic Associate for PlayMakers Rep; & Associate Director of HiddenVoices) directed To Buy the Sun: The Challenge of Pauli Murray, a play by Lynden Harris that premiered in 2011 in Durham, NC. We will be treated to a “staged reading” of excerpts from the play while hearing insights from those involved in staging the story of Pauli Murray’s life
- Award-winning historian, professor and author William Sturkey (Department of History, UNC-Chapel Hill) will provide historical context while highlighting the struggles, insights and impact of Pauli Murray’s life and work.
- Moderated by Christie Norris, Director of Carolina K-12, participants will be able to ask questions throughout this live, virtual discussion, and will also learn about the HRC’s annual Pauli Murray Award, presented annually to an Orange County, NC youth, adult, and business that have served the community with distinction in the pursuit of equality, justice, and human rights for all residents
Attending K-12 teachers can earn CEU’s for participation. Registrants are asked to read the article The Many Lives of Pauli Murray prior to the event.