PAST EVENTS

International Week Keynote Speaker: Emmanuel Jal
Monday, May 10, 2010
Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium
7 pm
FREE

Once a child soldier on the front lines of combat in war-torn Sudan, Emmanuel Jal has been hailed as the "rising star of African hip hop." WARchild, his third album and international solo debut, has launched Jal into the spotlight for its profound, empowering messages of peace and reconciliation. As the central figure of the internationally acclaimed War Child documentary, Jal has quickly become an international icon representing social justice and human rights.

Jal offers a greater philosophical message about war and peace. He translates his traumatic past as a child soldier into a positive experience that reflects the strength of human character. His lecture focuses on the power of human generosity, the need for political support in Darfur and what each of us can do to make a difference. Music is central to his message and at each appearance, Jal raps for freedom and sings for absolution.

The Innocence Project
Friday, April 23, 2010
Baker Theater
10:00 am

Sponsored by Phi Alpha Delta and Co-sponsored by UPC:

The Innocence Project was founded in 1992 to assist prisoners who could be proven innocent through DNA testing. To date, 242 people in the United States have been exonerated by DNA testing, including 17 who served time on death row. These people served an average of 12 years in prison before exoneration and release. The Innocence Project’s groundbreaking use of DNA technology to free innocent people has provided undeniable proof that wrongful convictions are not isolated or rare events but instead arise from systemic defects. As an independent nonprofit organization, the Innocence Project’s mission is to free the staggering number of innocent people who remain incarcerated and to bring substantive reform to the system responsible for their unjust imprisonment.

Mark Godsey, Director of the Ohio Innocence Project will be speaking. Mark Godsey earned his J.D. from the Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University, and is currently the director of the Ohio Innocence Project at The University of Cincinnati. Clarence Elkins will also be speaking. In 1999 Mr. Elkins was convicted of the rape and murder of his 68-year-old mother-in-law and the assault of his six-year-old niece. He was released from prison after serving six years when DNA evidence brought forward by the Innocence Project found the true perpetrator. Mr. Godsey and Mr. Elkins and Clarence will be addressing problems in the American legal system and why wrongful convictions occur.

The Kinsey Sicks
Monday, April 12, 2010
Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium
7:30 pm

The Kinsey Sicks are one of the biggest LGBT entertainment groups out there, and as part of Pride Week, Open Doors (Ohio University's umbrella LGBT group) as brought them in to headline the week. Please come to Mem Aud and support the LGBT community and laugh at one of the funniest drag/a cappela troupes in the world.

Tickets are $5 for students with ID and $10 for general public. They will be on sale starting at noon Monday, March 29 at the Mem Aud office, or they can be ordered through Mem Aud's Web site here.