Smithsonian Museum and NAACP Panel Discussion Celebrates “The Voting Rights Act at 50”
On Aug. 6, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The event was made possible, in no small part, through the efforts of the NAACP’s Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF), the country’s first and foremost civil and human rights law firm. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture and the LDF will present a panel discussion celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The event will take place Tuesday, July 21, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the National Museum of American History’s Warner Bros. Theater at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C.
This commemorative panel will discuss the struggle to protect and expand the right to vote. Veteran political strategist and television commentator Donna Brazile will moderate the panel, which includes:
- Ari Berman, contributing writer, The Nation
- Spencer Crew, Robinson Professor of History, George Mason University
- Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-council, LDF
- Henry (Hank) Sanders, Alabama State Senate (D)
Rex Ellis, associate director for curatorial affairs at the museum, and Janai Nelson, associate director-council of the LDF, will give welcoming remarks.
The event is free and open to the public. Registration is suggested, but walk-ups will be welcome. For reservations, visit http://naacptransforedamerica.eventbrite.com. For more information, call (202) 633-0070.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture was established by an act of Congress in 2003 making it the 19th museum of the Smithsonian Institution. It is scheduled to open in 2016.
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