Eyes on the Prize - Screening and Civil Rights Panel

EMC2, Councilman C.T. Martin, and Cascade Patch Connect Civil Rights Veterans With   

SW Atlanta’s Youth in a 6 part Black History Month Series

 ATLANTA, GEORGIA, January, 17, 2012 –

 The Idea - Connect community members, students, and businesses together to share civil rights experiences. Over six evenings in January and February 2012, the PBS series Eyes on the Prize - America's Civil Rights Movement will be screened at the newly renovated Mays High School.  After each viewing, a panel of civil rights veterans will entertain questions from the students and community about their personal civil rights experiences.

The Purpose - It is critical for young people to understand the struggle that came before them to ensure their access to education, jobs, and justice. SW Atlanta is in the enviable position of having many of the leaders and workers of the civil rights movement right here in the Benjamin E. Mays High School cluster. By engaging the resources/life experiences in the community, this segment of black history becomes tangible to the students.

The Schedule - All events are held at Benjamin E. Mays High School located at 3450 Benjamin E. Mays Drive, Atlanta, GA 30331. The elementary and middle schools that feed into the Mays HS are providing students to welcome the audience, recite civil rights themed poetry or speeches, and attend the events.

Leslie Meyers-Joseph, EMC2 Communications Chair, commented, “We are so excited to offer our kids and community this chance to see a portion of our history that so many young adults may take for granted.  We hope this series will drive home the importance of the trials our civil rights veterans experienced.”

For further information, visit www.emc2now.com, or call Leslie Meyers-Joseph at 404-696-0376 or Dawn Brockington-Shaw at 404-849-1916