‘Being Black in Maine’ webinar offered by Greater Bangor Area Branch NAACP, UMaine Alumni Association for Martin Luther King Day

In recognition of Martin Luther King Day, a free online public webinar, “Being Black in Maine: Lived Experience and the Prospect for Change,” will be livestreamed on YouTube on Jan. 18 from 5 to 6:15 p.m. 

The webinar, co-sponsored by the Greater Bangor Area Branch NAACP and the University of Maine Alumni Association, will include a sustained panel discussion, relevant short presentations and a special announcement of a new civil rights speaker series.

The YouTube event can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/zQlUVca2ReM

The panel discussion will include individuals who currently work or go to school in the state. The panel will be preceded by remarks from Michael Alpert, president of the Greater Bangor Area Branch NAACP; Joan Ferrini-Mundy, president of the University of Maine and the University of Maine at Machias; and Jojo Oliphant, a member of the UMaine Alumni Association. 

The program also includes presentations by UMaine alumnus and racial equity and justice educator David Patrick and UMaine student Tessa Solomon.

During the event, Alpert and John Diamond, president and CEO of the Alumni Association, will announce the establishment of the annual Robert Talbot Civil Rights Speaker Series. Named in honor of the longtime Maine civil rights leader from Bangor, the series will be held each fall on the UMaine campus and will feature one or more nationally prominent speakers. 

Contact: Michael Alpert, alpert@maine.edu; John Diamond, diamond@maine.edu