Life-long civil rights activist Angela Davis will speak at the University Saturday at 1 p.m. on the disproportionate number of minorities within the prison system, known as the prison industrial complex.
Known for her association with the Black Panther Party, Davis’ notoriety placed her as the third woman on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List in 1970 and inspired her current work speaking out against the injustices within the prison system.
While the 500 free tickets allotted for the lecture in 150 Columbia have all been given out, 123 Pacific has been designated for overflow and will provide a live video feed.
“I think it’s a really good opportunity for University students to hear from somebody so much involved in civil and human rights,” said Abrina Wheatfall, co-director of the Black Student Union, which is a co-sponsor of the event.
“Female civil rights activists don’t get a lot of recognition,” Wheatfall said.
Davis, born in Birmingham, Ala., in 1944, experienced firsthand the cruelty of racism in the South.
“My parents basically taught us that we had to be critical of the way things were… that we had to dedicate our lives to the kind of transformation that would make this a better world to live in for all of us,” Davis said of learning early on how to be “an activist,” in a speech recorded in Colorado Springs, Colo., in 1997.
Davis lived and studied in France and later in Germany while completing her degree in French from Brandeis University. She soon after earned her masters from UC San Diego and a Ph. D. in Philosophy from the Humboldt University of Berlin.
In the 1960s and 1970s Davis became associated with the Black Panther Party and joined the Communist Party USA.
Davis was placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List for conspiracy, kidnapping, and homicide, after being associated with violent Black Panther attempts to free the infamous “Soledad Brothers.”
During her 18 months in jail, John Lennon and Yoko Ono recorded the song “Angela” and the Rolling Stones recorded “Sweet Black Angel,” campaigning for her release. She was later acquitted of all charges, but her time spent behind bars holds strong in her beliefs about the prison system.
“As students, we get to learn from her and her experiences,” said Jael Anker-Lagos, co-director of the Multicultural Center, a sponsor of the event.
Davis is currently a professor at UC Santa Cruz and lectures outside of her university about the prison industrial complex.
“The vast majority of people (in prison) are poor people, and a disproportionate number of the those poor people were and continue to be people of color, people of African descent, Latinos, Native Americans,” Davis said.
“Over one-third of all young black men in this county (are) in prison or directly under the surveillance and control of the criminal justice system,” she said.
Wheatfall said she sees a lot of truth to Davis’ standpoint on the unequal and unjustified imprisonment of minorities, although “a lot of people turn a blind eye to it.”
“This is Eugene, and as much as people think it’s a liberated campus, it’s not. A lot of things are not taught here,” she said.
Davis describes the social effects of the prison industrial complex as “an ideological campaign to persuade people that criminals can be recognized by virtue of their race… so all of us learn to be afraid of the young black man,” she said.
Steven Morozumi, programs adviser for the Multicultural Center, said he believes prison industrial growth has targeted single mothers and people of color for years. This will be an opportunity for Davis to expose University students to these facts and educate them on the inequalities that exist in society, he said.
“I’m hoping that we all get a clearer sense of how to look at our situation, nationally and internationally, in a clear-minded way,” he said.
Morozumi added that he hopes Davis’ lecture will “create a general vision of alliance among students and communities.”
Between 100 to 200 seats will be available in Pacific Hall, he said.
Wheatfall and Anker-Lagos said they were not surprised by the quick dispersal of available tickets, knowing how influential Davis is.
“I know it will be overwhelming in a good way,” Anker-Lagos said.
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