President Ramsey's Speech at the Civil Rights Champions Event
Friday, April 7, 2006, 11 a.m.
Chao Auditorium
Ekstrom Library
Good morning. Thank you for joining us on this special occasion.
We just heard John Lennon’s “Imagine,” a song of peace, of hope, of unity. Lennon spoke of a perfect world, a world free from many of the problems that face society today. John Lennon sang of building a better place where we could all live together in harmony. We’re here today to honor three women who devoted their lives to building that better place – Anne Braden, Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King. All three left us within the past six months—much too soon, and we miss them much. But they left us with a special gift: for they set the example for us to follow. Each one took courageous actions that inspired great change.
You know their stories:
Rosa Parks stood up for what was right by continuing to sit on that bus in Montgomery.
Anne Braden and her husband, Carl, took a stand for desegregation by buying a house in a white neighborhood and renting it to a black family.
Coretta Scott King continued the legacy of her husband, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., by pushing for civil rights in this country and challenging the South African government to abolish apartheid.
Their actions were bold! Their actions were brave! Their actions brought change!
But their work is far from finished. Their work is of particular importance to us at U of L for we must follow their example by building a community that is inclusive. I have repeated on many occasions the words I spoke in my State of the University address last fall when I said, “Our commitment is to make the University of Louisville a place welcoming to all: students, faculty, staff, regardless of race, regardless of religious beliefs, country of origin, political philosophy and regardless of sexual orientation.”
And we are making progress. Today, we are offering courses in areas such as women’s studies and Pan-African studies—areas that not too long ago could not have existed.
And our keynote speaker, Carla Wallace, last year endowed the Audre Lorde Endowed Chair in Race, Class, Gender and Sexuality. The chair is based jointly in the women’s and gender studies department and the Pan-African studies department.
The state’s match of Carla’s generous gift enabled us to also establish a visiting scholar position in the Pan-African Studies Department.
But, our efforts can not be limited to the classroom, nor just numerical achievements.
We must continue to build a campus environment that encourages discussion of sensitive, even explosive, issues – even when, in some cases, the views expressed are not our own.
Freedom to speak – and freedom to respond – exists because of the efforts of people like Anne Braden, Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King.
We recommit today to continue the spirit of their work to their legacy.
For as John Lennon wrote: “You may say I’m a dreamer. But I’m not the only one. I hope some day you’ll join us. And the world will live as one.”
Thank you.