Attending Author Talks (2pts)

 

On November 6th, I had the honor of sharing the stage with former Justice Albie Sachs and President Rosalind Brewer for a Fireside Chat. After studying abroad in South Africa during the fall semester of my junior year, I became very familiar with the legacy of Albie Sachs, who was appointed to South Africa’s first Constitutional Court by Nelson Mandela. His book, The Vengeance of a Freedom Fighter (which I was fortunate enough to have signed), details his road to recovery, as well as his rationale for developing what many describe as the most progressive constitution in the world. Sharing space with him was truly a unique experience. 

Upon his arrival, I, along with a few other students, took him on a tour of Laura Spelman, which displays a ceiling-to-floor mural of prominent Black women activists, theorists, politicians, and academics. I stood in awe as he pointed out women like Angela Davis and bell hooks, whom he described as his close friends – I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing in real time. Afterward, Dr. Spence led him to the AUC Declaration of Human Rights, which is hung in the multipurpose room in Laura Spelman. As someone who has dedicated his life to activism and human rights, particularly in South Africa, his reaction to the declaration demonstrated the ways in which we remain interconnected through our shared struggles. 

However, one of my favorite moments during this event was when we were all seated on stage on ready to begin our discussion. President Brewer asked her first question, but before responding, Justice Sachs chose to speak about how significant and emotional it was for him to be speaking at an institution like Spelman. After giving lectures across the Ivy League circuit, Justice Sachs described what we all knew: the importance of witnessing the knowledge production that emerges from not only a historically Black institution, but one specifically made for Black women - Jayda Hendrickson