Release date: Jan. 25, 2008

Nikki Giovanni Lecture, Reading, Book Signing at Emory Feb. 6

Contact: Elaine Justice, 404-727-0643, elaine.justice@emory.edu
Contact: Contact: Kelly McLendon, 404-727-4481, kelly.mclendon@emory.edu

Activist, poet, author and educator Nikki Giovanni will present a lecture on issues plaguing the African American community and read her own selected poetry at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 6. The event, scheduled in Tull Auditorium at Emory Law School, 1301 Clifton Rd., is part of the Black Student Caucus Heritage Week activities at Emory University's Candler School of Theology. The event is free and open to the public, and will be followed by a book signing.

"Giovanni has inspired my writings, as she has many people throughout the world. We are honored to have her at Emory," said Renee K. Harrison, interim director of Candler's Black Church Studies Program and visiting assistant professor of African American religious practices and culture.

One of the most widely read American poets, Giovanni serves as University Distinguished Professor and Gloria D. Smith Professor of Black Studies at Virginia Tech, where she has been on the faculty since 1987. She remains committed to the fight for civil rights and equality, presenting the truth as she sees it, and inspiring individuals to make a difference in themselves and the world.

In 1997, Giovanni visited Emory as keynote speaker for the university's Martin Luther King Week commemoration. On that occasion, Giovanni exhorted her young audience to care: "How can you be young today and not want to serve?" she said. "It's a wonderful time to be alive and share your talents. People are trying to make you mean, but there's no reason for your generation to be mean. We've given you 12 years, 16 years, in order to learn something. No generation that has come before has been given that. You ought to be the most generous generation on the face of the earth."

For more information, contact Rodney Mason at ramason@emory.edu or 404-727-4180.

Arrangements for the appearance of Giovanni were made through Greater Talent Network Inc.

Emory University (www.emory.edu) is one of the nation’s leading private research universities and a member of the Association of American Universities. Known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities, Emory is ranked as one of the country's top 20 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system.

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