Knowing how big of a deal Angela Davis is, I was very excited to see her speak. The excitement of everyone else was also clear when I had to sit in another classroom to watch a livestream of the event because the venue was full. Regardless, for the time that I was there, I found Angela Davis talking a lot about the unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Movement and what they had done, but also about many of the issues that still plague our country today.
Angela Davis talked about many of the big name Civil Rights Movement people, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, herself, etc., but she also mentioned some unsung heroes. The one that came to my mind as the most important, were the group of people who defended the Little Rock 9 when they first went to school. Angela Davis mom was one of the members of that group. I found these people to be the most important because of how influential they were in protecting and supporting the group that started the movement for African American kids and teenagers to be allowed in formerly all white schools.
Ms. Davis also spoke on the persecution of women, specifically trans women of color, how they are more likely to be in danger because of who they are rather than a white woman who is trans. She also mentions that the only way to be “gifted” growing up in our society was to come from a wealthy white background.
She also mentioned plenty of the strides that women and women of color alike had made. More women were in Congress than ever before, including a Palestinian woman. Before I had to leave early, one of Angela Davis final thoughts was reminding us to watch the documentary about the abuse on many young girls by R. Kelly. She focused on how it was known that R. Kelly was abusing little girls for a while now, yet the music industry didn’t seem to care until it became mainstream, and many people continued listening to him regardless.
I was unfortunately unable to stay for the entirety of her speech, but it was a pleasure and privilege to hear her speak.
