Legendary Civil Rights Activist to Give Address at NC State’s MLK Commemoration

Morris Dees, a celebrated civil rights activist and the founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, will be the keynote speaker at North Carolina State University’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration on Wednesday, Jan. 14, at noon in Stewart Theatre.

The event is free and open to the public. Stewart Theatre is located in Talley Student Center on NC State’s main campus.

A civil rights lawyer, Dees has dedicated his career to pursuing equal opportunities for minorities and the poor. The prejudice and racial injustices confronted by the civil rights movement encouraged Dees to found the Southern Poverty Law Center, for which he currently serves as chief trial counsel. In addition to his work for the center, Dees frequently speaks at colleges and universities throughout the country. He is the author of three books, including “A Lawyer’s Journey,” an autobiography.

Dees has received numerous awards in conjunction with his work at the Southern Poverty Law Center. Trial Lawyers for Public Justice named him Trial Lawyer of the Year in 1987, and he received the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Award from the National Education Association in 1990. The American Bar Association gave Dees its Young Lawyers Distinguished Service Award, and the American Civil Liberties Union honored him with its Roger Baldwin Award. In 2001, the National Education Association selected Dees as recipient of its Friend of Education Award, its highest award, for his “exemplary contributions to education, tolerance and civil rights.”

Dees’ lecture is co-sponsored by NC State’s African-American Cultural Center and the Union Activities Board’s Black Students Board.

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