Social Activist Asa Gordon to Present Realizing the Dream Lecture

Social Activist Asa Gordon to Present Realizing the Dream Lecture

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Asa Gordon, founder and executive director of the Douglass Institute of Government, a Washington, D.C.-based educational think tank, will present, “Realizing the Dream by Honoring the Voting Rights Legacy of the United States Colored Troops,” Tuesday, March 19, at 7 p.m., at the Embassy Suites, 2410 University Boulevard, Tuscaloosa.

Gordon is the 2019 Realizing the Dream Lecturer.

In addition to his work with the Douglass Institute, Gordon serves as secretary-general of the Sons & Daughters of the United States Colored Troops. The organization is chartered by the African American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation to augment the Foundation’s mission to use the national monument, The Spirit of Freedom, to honor the historical legacy of those who served in the USCT during the American Civil War.

A retired NASA astrodynamicist, Gordon has been published in international scientific journals and referenced in Ivan Van Sertima’s “Blacks in Science: Ancient and Modern.” His research has been employed by private industry, both domestic and abroad, for tracking satellites in space, and he served two terms as president of the Goddard Engineers, Scientists and Technicians Association.

Gordon’s social activism spans from civil actions related to democratizing the Electoral College, to constitutional penalty for voter disenfranchisement, to the 14th Amendment right to vote provision, to addressing neo-Confederate culture in American politics. He is chair of the D.C. Statehood Green Party Electoral College Task Force.

In 2016, Gordon received the National Civil Rights Conference Civil Rights and Social Justice Award in recognition of his promotion of the post-Civil War voting rights legacy of the USCT.

The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be available to guests immediately following the lecture. For more information and to notify organizers of planned attendance, RSVP to community.affairs@ua.edu.

Each year, the community celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with Realizing the Dream activities including a concert, Legacy Awards banquet, performing arts event, Unity Day programs and a lecture. The celebration, much of which takes place during the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, is sponsored in part by an endowment from the Fiesta Bowl and is the work of an alliance comprised of Stillman College, Shelton State Community College, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and The University of Alabama.

The University’s participation in the Realizing the Dream initiative is coordinated by the Division of Community Affairs, which is recognized nationally and internationally for its leadership in community engagement.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Realizing the Dream Committee exists to raise consciousness about injustice and promote human equality, peace, and social justice by creating educational and cultural opportunities for growth, empowerment and social change, so that every person may experience the bounty of life’s abundant possibilities. The committee is comprised of representatives from Shelton State Community College, Stillman College, The University of Alabama and the Tuscaloosa Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Contact

Diane Kennedy-Jackson, UA community affairs, 205-348-4480, dkkennedy1@ua.edu; UA communications, 205-348-5320

Source

Carol N. Agomo, director of community and administrative affairs, community.affairs@ua.edu, 205-348-7405