Ohio State hosts lectures on multiculturalism during fall quarter

COLUMBUS – The co-founder and chief trial counsel for the Southern Poverty Law Center is just one of several guests who will speak during this quarter’s President and Provost’s Diversity Lecture Series at The Ohio State University. The series, now in its third year, brings in a distinguished list of speakers to explore issues ranging from civil rights to living in a multicultural society.

“And Justice for All” will be the topic of a lecture delivered by Morris Dees, a civil rights lawyer and activist, who will speak on Oct. 24. Dees has been with the Southern Poverty Law Center since its inception.

Frank W. Hale, Jr., vice provost and professor emeritus who serves as a consultant and distinguished representative of the university, coordinates the lecture series.

“We have a variety of speakers from various backgrounds – really major hitters – who have been dealing with in the area of diversity,” Hale said. “Some of the speakers are authors and some are activists. All of them have a point of view that is consistent with what we are trying to get across.”

The lectures, which are free and open to the public, are a component of Ohio State’s Diversity Action Plan.

The Autumn Quarter diversity lectures are:

• Thursday, Oct. 24, “With Justice for All,” 7:30 p.m. in the Ohio Union Ballrooms. Morris Dees wrote an autobiography, “A Season for Justice,” which was published in 1991. He also wrote a second book, “Hate on Trial: The Case Against America’s Most Dangerous Neo-Nazi,” which chronicles the trial and the $12.5 million judgment against white supremacist Tom Metzger and his White Aryan Resistance Group for their responsibility in the beating death by Skinheads of a young black student in Portland, Ore. His latest book, “Gathering Storm: America’s Militia Threat,” exposes the danger posed by today’s domestic terrorist groups.

• Tuesday, Nov. 19, “Faith and Diversity in America,” 9 a.m. in the Conference Theater of the Ohio Union. Alan Wolfe, professor of political science and director of the Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life at Boston College, is an author or editor of more than 10 books, including “One Nation, After All,” and most recently, “Moral Freedom: The Search for Virtue in a World of Choice.” Wolfe is a frequent contributing editor of “The New Republic” and “The Wilson Quarterly.” He also writes frequently for “The New York Times,” “The Atlantic Monthly” and “The Washington Post.”

For more information on the 2002-2003 President and Provost’s Diversity Lecture Series, visit the diversity Web site at http://www.osu.edu/diversity/buffer2.html or contact Frank Hale, Jr., at (614) 688-4255.