 | The Peabody Invitational Poetry Slam will be one of the highlights of the museum's annual program honoring Martin Luther King Jr.'s work for environmental and social justice. |
"Building Healthy Communities" is the overarching theme of a series of programs at Yale celebrating the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK).
The events -- which include musical and dramatic performances, talks and family programs -- will take place during the week of the national holiday honoring the civil rights activist. The activities are co-sponsored and coordinated by the Coalition for Diversity at Yale.
A description of the programs follows. Unless otherwise listed, all are free and open to the public. There is a schedule of events is available online at http://nursing.yale.edu/Community/mlk.html.
For the 11th year, Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History is opening its doors to the community for a two-day celebration titled "Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Legacy of Environmental and Social Justice 2007."
In his effort to work toward equality for, and harmony between, all people, King strove to raise awareness about public health concerns and urban environmental issues that disproportionately affect minority and low-income communities. This is now referred to as environmental justice, a term that was coined long after King's death.
The Peabody program -- to be held noon-4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 14, and 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 15 -- honors King's efforts to ensure environmental and social justice for all people.
A highlight of the museum's MLK festival is the 6th annual Arnold J. Alderman Memorial Lecture (see below). The program also features feature storytelling, informational booths, video documentaries, performing artists from the New Haven community and around the world, and interactive musical events such as a participatory drum circle. Other highlights will include the "Hip Hop Café" featuring live dance and music, and the renowned Peabody Invitational Poetry Slam. The museum will also host activities relating to urban environmental and public health issues, covering such topics as lead poisoning prevention and asthma. Topics of other presentations include community gardening, inner-city canoeing, and urban access to outdoor recreational opportunities.
A drum circle led by Michael Mills, past recipient of the Arts Council of New Haven's Arts Award, will close the event on Monday. Other featured performers and events include Larry Spotted Crow Mann and the Quabbin Lake Singers, the Ranjey de Yale Bhangra team, Anansi stories by the Alliance Children's Theater, and storytellers Eshu Bumpus and Motoko.
For a complete schedule of events, visit www.peabody.yale.edu.
Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History is located at 170 Whitney Ave. Free city bus passes are available for routes to and from the Yale Peabody Museum (for Jan. 14 and 15 only). Call (203) 432-6646 or pick up passes in advance at the museum's admissions desk in the lobby.
The Peabody festival is sponsored by Citizen's Bank, the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, the Connecticut Humanities Council, Connecticut Transit, Poland Springs and Yale's Office of New Haven and State Affairs.
"Advancing Environmental Justice and Urban Sustainability" will be the topic of the 6th Annual Arnold J. Alderman Memorial Lecture, to be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 14, as part of the MLK celebration at the Yale Peabody Museum, 170 Whitney Ave. (see above).
This year's featured speaker is Peggy Shepard, executive director and co-founder of West Harlem Environmental Action Inc. (WE ACT). Founded in 1988, WE ACT was New York's first environmental justice organization created to improve environmental health and quality of life in communities of color.
Shepard, who received the 2003 Heinz Award for the Environment, was the first female chair of the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2001-2003). A former member of the National Advisory Environmental Health Sciences Council of the National Institutes of Health, Shepard co-chairs the Northeast Environmental Justice Network and is on the Environmental Justice Advisory Committee to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The Alderman Memorial Lecture is sponsored by the children of Arnold J. Alderman: Susan and Barry Buxbaum, Laury and Edward Walker, and Harold and Claudia Alderman.
Anyone interested in working with city youth leaders to help mentor and develop their leadership skills in creating activities and programs for youth across New Haven is invited to an information session on Thursday, Jan. 18.
The New Haven-Yale Community Leadership Forum Information Session will take place 5-6 p.m. in Rm. 211 of the Hall of Graduate Studies, 320 York St.
It is sponsored by the Graduate School Office for Diversity & Equal Opportunity and Yale's Office of New Haven and State Affairs. Contact grad.diversity@yale.edu or (203) 432-0763 for further information.
A program titled "Building Healthy Communities: Foods and Traditions from Our Diverse Community" will take place 6-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 18, in Rm. 211 of the Hall of Graduate Studies, 320 York St.
In addition to specialties from New Haven's ethnic restaurants, the event will feature information on how to prepare ethnic foods that are healthy and nutritious.
The event is sponsored by the Yale Graduate School Office for Diversity & Equal Opportunity and the Coalition for Diversity at Yale. Contact grad.diversity@yale.edu or (203) 432-0763 for further information.
The unsung role of a homosexual individual in the civil rights movement will be the focus of a screening and discussion titled "The Life and Work of Bayard Rustin: Queer Activists Working Alongside Martin Luther King Jr."
The program will take place at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 18, in the Branford College common room, 74 High St.
Although he organized the 1963 March on Washington, Bayard Rustin, a homosexual, is often left out of the histories of the civil rights movement. Walter Naegle, Rustin's surviving partner, will introduce the film "Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin," and take part in a question-and-answer session following the screening.
The event is sponsored by the LGBT Student Cooperative, Black Student Alliance at Yale, Queer Political Action Committee, Afro-American Cultural Center, the Yale Research Initiative on the History of Sexuality, the Joseph Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale and the Lesbian and Gay Studies Program.
Yale's Story Troupe will present a program honoring King as part of the Family "First Friday at Five" Story Hour taking place 5:30-7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 19, in Rm. 119 of the Hall of Graduate Studies.
The event is sponsored by the McDougal Graduate Student Center. For more information, call (203) 432-BLUE or visit the website at http://research.yale.edu/cgi-bin/mcdougal/publish2.72/webevent.cgi.
The Black Church at Yale (BCAY) will present its 4th annual MLK Gospel Extravaganza at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20, in Battell Chapel, corner of College and Elm streets.
Tickets are $5 for general admission.
In keeping with King's legacy and BCAY's mission to reach out to the Yale and greater New Haven communities, this year's Gospel Extravaganza theme is "Justice and Love."
Headlining the program are the nationally acclaimed Nubian Gents, a troupe that combines step and dance with contemporary gospel, and guest youth group speaker Devin Tuner, who uses multimedia presentations as part of his ministry. The extravagana will also feature a number of locally renowned community choirs and performing groups including New Vision International Ministries Praise Team, Kathleen Turner and Kersten Stevens '05. There are also a number of Yale performers, including Total Praise from the Yale Divinity School, Yale Gospel Choir, Funmi Showole '08, Living Water, Christopher Williams '08 and Tina Colon '09.
The impact of the AIDS crisis in Africa and America is explored in the Yale Repertory Theatre production, "In the Continuum," which opens on Friday, Jan. 12.
The show, written and performed by Danai Gurira and Nikkole Salter, looks at the parallel experiences of two women -- one in Los Angeles and the other in Zimbabwe -- who learn they are pregnant and infected with the AIDS virus.
Tickets for the show, which continues through Feb. 10, are $35-$55.
The Coalition for Diversity at Yale (CDAY) is a group of faculty, staff and students working to foster an educational and work environment that embraces and promotes diversity and equity at all levels of the institution. CDAY aims to support specialized education for the Yale community on issues of race, gender, culture and lifestyle, as well as to promote the recruitment and retention of diverse faculty, students and staff. For more information, send e-mail to coalition.diversity@yale.edu.
T H I S
Family fun, talks, music and more to highlight celebration of legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
Annual Peabody festival
Peggy Shepard
Alderman Memorial Lecture
The theme of this year's celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. at the Peabody Museum is "Building Healthy Communities." Here, volunteers work together on a community garden at Atwater and Pine streets in New Haven.
Developing young leaders
Celebrating diversity
The unsung activists
Family story hour
Gospel concert
"In the Continuum"
Coalition for Diversity at Yale
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