Last night's Black Caucus rally opened with the song "Lift Every Voice and Sing," a theme that carried through the evening's call to action to combat social problems.
The song ended with the challenge to "Let us march on till victory is won," which speaker Kevin Powell emphasized during his speech before about 50 students and faculty.
Powell, a political activist, poet, journalist and public speaker, touched on many recent social problems in America as the guest speaker at the Black Caucus' "Now More Than Ever!" rally.
He discussed issues such as Hurricane Katrina, the Jena Six, and the shooting of Sean Bell, an Black man killed almost a year ago by police while leaving a New York City night club. Political issues such as the public school system in America, global warming, the war in Iraq and the United States voting system were also addressed.
"It's the year 2007 and we don't even have a uniform voting system, and here we are trying to show Iraq and other countries what a democracy is," Powell said.
Powell, who has written for publications such as Newsweek, The Washington Post, and Vibe Magazine, reinforced the purpose of the rally, which Caucus President Anthony Washington said was to make minorities aware of current social issues.
"Going along with this whole theme of now more than ever, now more than ever we as a country need to understand that racism and classism are alive and well in America," Powell said. "Unfortunately, here we are in 2007 and we're talking about nooses."
The event took place in room 100 of the Life Sciences building, with the United Soul Ensemble opening with a performance of "Lift Every Voice and Sing," which is also known as the black national anthem. The song was followed by a speech by former Black Caucus President and current student Darryl Watson, who talked about initiating change within the black community.
"Regardless of your race, you matter," Watson told the audience. "From Beaver Stadium to Beaver Hall, we need to transform our idea of diversity from something that sounds nice and looks nice on posters to a campus of equity and equality."
Powell is currently a 2008 candidate for the United State Congress in Brooklyn, NY. He praised the work of many historical figures such as Paul Robeson and W.E.B. DuBois while still encouraging the audience to look not to the past, but to the future.
"It's not revolutionary to just quote figures from the past like Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King. What do you have to say?" Powell challenged the audience. "What history are you going to make?"
