Activists to speak out at Athens ri

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Subject: Activists to speak out at Athens rights fest 


Activists to speak out at Athens rights fest 
The Atlanta Journal the Atlanta Constitution; Atlanta, Ga.; Apr 23, 1999;
Kathleen
Folkerth; 

Sub Title: 
          [Home Edition]
Start Page: 
          P; 2
Dateline: 
          Athens

Abstract:
Awareness celebration features 30 speakers, children's activities, art
exhibits and
25 local bands. 2 p.m.-midnight Saturday; noon-midnight Sunday. Free. College
Square, downtown Athens. 706-543-3026.

To help reach those goals, organizers have lined up 30 speakers, including
Sunday Ereba, a Nigerian refugee now living in Atlanta. Ereba organized
protests
against the Nigerian government's arrangements with Shell Oil Co. Other
speakers include Nisha Anand, a coordinator for the Free Burma Coalition;
State
Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond (who's an Athens native); and University
of Georgia history professor Edward Larson, who last year won a Pulitzer Prize
for "Summer of the Gods," his book about the Tennessee Scopes "monkey trial"
in the 1920s. Also scheduled to appear are representatives of gay rights and
environmentalist groups and a marijuana activist.

Full Text:
(Copyright, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution - 1999)


Preview

Athens Human Rights Festival

Awareness celebration features 30 speakers, children's activities, art
exhibits and 25 local
bands. 2 p.m.-midnight Saturday; noon-midnight Sunday. Free. College Square,
downtown
Athens. 706-543-3026.

Two dozen performers will share the stage with speakers ranging from a
pro-marijuana
activist to a Pulitzer Prize-winning professor at the 21st annual Athens
Human Rights Festival
on Saturday and Sunday.

Held in College Square for the past 15 years, the gathering is known for
attracting a varied
group of spectators who come to hear music as well as activist rhetoric.

"We'll be addressing the major issues of our time: Kosovo, hate crimes,
workers' rights and
campaign reform," said Michael Collins, one of the organizers of this year's
event and a
founder of the festival. "We want everyone to have fun, spread love and raise
consciousness."

To help reach those goals, organizers have lined up 30 speakers, including
Sunday Ereba, a
Nigerian refugee now living in Atlanta. Ereba organized protests against the
Nigerian
government's arrangements with Shell Oil Co. Other speakers include Nisha
Anand, a
coordinator for the Free Burma Coalition; State Labor Commissioner Michael
Thurmond
(who's an Athens native); and University of Georgia history professor Edward
Larson, who
last year won a Pulitzer Prize for "Summer of the Gods," his book about the
Tennessee
Scopes "monkey trial" in the 1920s. Also scheduled to appear are
representatives of gay
rights and environmentalist groups and a marijuana activist.

Rounding out the festival are 25 of Athens' better-known musical acts, as
well as a couple of
up-and-comers. Five-Eight, Macha and Fuzzy Sprouts play Saturday; Big Atomic
headlines
on Sunday.

"There's a lot of great events going on (in Athens), but this is the only
one I can think of that
devotes as much attention to not only talking about human rights but letting
people exercise
them," said Dave Domizi, bassist and vocalist for the Fuzzy Sprouts.

Sunday afternoon's events will be family-centered, with performances by Pam
Blanchard and
the Sunnyside Up Band, Athens Montessori Singers and the Chestnut Grove
Youth Choir.

Collins said the festival was created to remember the four students shot and
killed by
National Guardsmen at Kent State University in Ohio in 1970. He said he and
the other
organizers are proud that the event is supported by local businesses, not
corporate sponsors.
And, no matter the weather, it will go on.

"We've only had one festival where it rained," Collins said. "The gods and
goddesses have
been with us."