January 20, 2015
4 Black Business Execs Talk ‘Selma for Students’ Campaign and Dr. King’s Legacy
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,” are the famous words that Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke during his address at Holt Street Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955.
With the recent protests in Ferguson, Missouri and the fight for justice in the deaths of several unarmed black men, it seems as though King’s words still resonate with Americans today and the release of Ava DuVernay’s film Selma couldn’t have come at a better time.
As the fight for justice continues, community leaders have taken it upon themselves to ensure that young people are met with the opportunity to connect the dots between the social issues of today and those we faced during the Civil Rights era. Last week, we reported that 27 black business executives joined forces to create the “Selma for Students” campaign, which has raised enough money to allow students in select cities nationwide to see the historic film for free. The unprecedented campaign, which is an extension of the original free Selma screening offered to NYC students, has raised over $2 million in a little over a week according to IBM executive Michael Littlejohn.
BlackEnterprise.com caught up with four of these executives to get insight on why they joined the campaign and what impact they hope the Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired film will have on youth today.