Bayard Rustin: A Faithful Life | March 15

Friends Seminary students will perform dramatic readings of Bayard Rustin's letters during an evening in the Meetinghouse with Michael G. Long, editor of I Must Resist: Bayard Rustin’s Life in Letters, which includes newly-released documents which enrich the understanding of the prominent Civil Rights figure who helped shape Martin Luther King Jr.’s discipline of non-violence.  The program, Bayard Rustin, A Faithful Life, will take place on Thursday, March 15, 2012 between 7:00-8:30 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

Additional speakers scheduled to reflect on Bayard Rustin’s non-violence, prison, and civil rights experiences and the meaning of his achievements today are Daniel Seeger, Eddie Ellis, and Velma Hill.  There will be a book signing at the program’s completion.

“We are excited that the centennial year of Bayard Rustin's birth has begun and that universities, museums, public and religious institutions, and communities throughout the country are planning commemorative events,” said Walter Naegle, life partner of Bayard and director of the Bayard Rustin Fund.  “The program at 15th Street Meeting has special significance as it is a place where Bayard worshiped.”

Joining Friends Seminary as co-sponsors are American Friends Service Committee and the 15th Street Quaker Meeting.