Brandeis Dean Duncan, Professor Powell to speak at symposium marking Kentucky Civil Rights Act anniversary

On January 27, the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights, in conjunction with the University of Kentucky College of Law, will present a Law Symposium commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Kentucky Civil Rights Act. Speakers will include Brandeis School of Law Dean Susan Duncan and Professor Cedric Merlin Powell, as well as judges, lawyers and civil rights activists.

The Act was signed into law by Governor Edward T. Breathitt on Jan. 27, 1966, and remains one of the most significant pieces of legislation to have been passed in the last 50 years. At the time of its passage, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. noted that "(It) is the strongest and most comprehensive civil rights bill passed by a southern state."

Registration for the one-day symposium begins at 8 a.m., with the program beginning at 8:30 a.m. and ending at 4 p.m.

The program will feature John J. Johnson, executive director of the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights; George Stinson, chair of the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights; David Brennen, Dean and Professor at the University of Kentucky College of Law; Eli Capilouto, President of the University of Kentucky, the Hon. John D. Minton, Jr., Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court; the Hon. Andy Beshear, Attorney General of Kentucky; and Douglas Farnsley, President of the Kentucky Bar Association.

The Hon. Patricia Timmons-Goodson, chair of the United States Commission on Human Rights, will provide the keynote address. She was recently appointed by President Obama to Chair the Commission. Prior, she served as Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of North Carolina.

Additionally, panels and discussions will include:

• "The Way we Were - Life in Kentucky before the Kentucky Civil Rights Act," with Moderator Raul Cunningham, President of the Kentucky Conference of the NAACP and panelists the Rev. Thurman Coleman, former Commissioner, Kentucky Commission on Human Rights; Valinda Livingston, retired educator; Louisville Metro Council Person and UofL Archivist Tom Owen; Porter G. Peoples, President and CEO of the Lexington Fayette County Urban League; and David Welch, former Mayor of Ashland, Ky., and former Chair of the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights.
• "Keeping it Fresh: The Role of Law Schools to Encourage Law Students to Pursue the Practice of Civil Rights Law," with Dean Brennen, Dean Duncan and NKU Chase Law School Dean Jeffrey A. Standen.
• "Breaking Barriers: It's Personal - Overcoming Disability Discrimination," with the Hon. David L. Holton II, Jefferson District Court Judge.
• "Trends in Fair Housing Law: Where We've Been and Where We're Going," with UK Law Professor Robert Schwemm, and Art Crosby, Executive Director of the Lexington Fair Housing Counsel.
• "Tensions Between Civil Rights and the Constitution," with UK Law Professor Cortney E. Lollar moderating, and panelists Michael Aldridge, Executive Director of the Kentucky American Civil Liberties Union; Bill Sharp, Legal Director of the Kentucky American Civil Liberties Union; Joann Bland, Attorney and civil rights activist; Carolyn Miller-Cooper, Executive Director of the Louisville Metro Human Relations Commission; Ray Sexton, Executive Director of the Lexington/Fayette Civil Rights Commission; Ed Dove, Attorney at the Lexington/Fayette Civil Rights Commission; and Brandeis School of Law Professor Cedric Merlin Powell.

In addition, there will be a number of students, organizations and activists within the civil rights community who will participate in Q&A sessions with the presenters and panelists as time permits.