April 10th Event!!!

 

14th Annual Robert and Jean Graetz Symposium on Human Rights and Reconciliation!

Dear Friends of the Robert S. and Jean E. Graetz Foundation, We have exciting news to share! After a 6-year hiatus, we are delighted to announce that the annual Robert and Jean Graetz Symposium on Human Rights and Reconciliation is back! Please mark your calendars for April 10, 2025, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. The first annual Graetz Symposium was convened in the spring of 2007, in partnership with the National Center for the Study of African American History and Culture at Alabama State University (ASU). It was established on the campus of ASU in honor of long-time human rights activists, Rev. Robert and Mrs. Jean Graetz, because of their tireless efforts to advance the cause of human rights in Montgomery and around the world. The symposium is designed to stimulate action-oriented citizens to work toward reconciliation while examining factors that divide ethnic and other groups. Its focus is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of a “Beloved Community.” The Graetz Symposium featured luminaries from all over the world discussing vital human rights issues and ran from 2007 until 2019, when the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by the passing of Bob and Jeannie, prevented it from continuing. On April 10, 2025, the Robert S. and Jean E. Graetz Foundation in partnership with the National Center for the Study of African American History and Culture at ASU will reconvene the Graetz Symposium, commemorating the 70th Anniversary of The Montgomery Bus Boycott and the 60th Anniversaries of the Selma March and the Voting Rights Act and continuing the dialogue around human rights, reconciliation, and striving toward the actualization of the Beloved Community. The Theme of the 2025 Graetz Symposium is “Building the Beloved Community: From Walking to Marching to Healing and Thriving.”  Highlights of the 14th Annual Graetz Symposium! Inaugural Annual Awards from Graetz Foundation Robert S. and Jean E. Graetz Lifetime Service Award being presented to legendary Civil Rights Attorney Fred Gray Claudette Colvin Activism Award being presented to a local High School student, Jeremiah Treece, who, like Claudette Colvin, single-handedly stood up for justice and took on City Hall to remove the racist, confederate iconography on his city’s flag Graetz Foundation Beloved Community Service Awards being presented to four outstanding leaders who have made significant contributions toward building the Beloved Community in Montgomery and beyond:  Valerie Smedley; Laurie Weil; and Randall Williams and Suzanne La Rosa Dynamic Keynote Speaker Welcoming Emmy award-winning CNN Correspondent Nick Valencia, who will be sharing his life story and insights from his coverage of the groundswell of community solidarity around the world following the George Floyd murder Presentation of Beloved Community Media Award to Nick Valencia Interactive Event Engaging the action-oriented audience: conversations not just lectures  Intergenerational: with a focus on young people, as we know the legacy of Dr. King, the Graetzes, the walkers of Montgomery, and the marchers of Selma will be carried on through the determination and vision of our young people Focus on action: steps each of us can take individually and collectively to further the Beloved Community We want you!!! Here’s how you can help: Join us on April 10 in Montgomery, Alabama for the Symposium! Registration form coming soon Help spread the word! Click here to make a financial contribution of any size to help with operating expenses. Bob and Jeannie always made sure there was never a cost to attend the symposium and luncheon, to make sure it was accessible for everyone Send your ​positive thoughts, prayers, and encouragement to help build collective energy for an enlightening, powerful, and revitalizing event! We know Bob and Jeannie would be thrilled to know the symposium that was so near and dear to their hearts is back! We look forward to hopefully seeing many of you in Montgomery on April 10!  In the words of Bob Graetz that he wrote in every book he signed, "Let us work together to keep the dream alive." In solidarity, Meta and the Graetz Foundation Team Meta Ellis, Chairperson Robert S. and Jean E. Graetz Foundation www.graetzfoundation.org