Morehouse School of Medicine Public Health Professor Celebrates and Shares Husband's Life and Work with Community

The Seventh Annual Walter Rodney Symposium will be held on Friday, March 19, 2010 from 1:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. at the Spelman College Cosby Auditorium, 350 Spelman Lane SW, Atlanta, GA. The symposium "30 Years: Reflections on the Life and Works of Walter Rodney" will feature two outstanding speakers, academic and student panel discussions, and cultural performances. The event is free and open to the public.

The symposium honors the work of Walter Rodney, Ph.D. (1942-1980), Pan-Africanist historian, educator and political activist widely known for his seminal work, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. Originally published in 1972, the text has been translated into Portuguese, German and Japanese, and is widely used for coursework in colleges and universities in the U.S., Europe, Africa and the Caribbean. Rodney authored nine books and more than 50 articles, including: The Groundings with My Brothers (c.1969); A History of the Upper Guinea Coast, 1545 to 1980 (c.1970) and History of the Guyanese Working People 1881-1905 (c.1981). The first Rodney Symposium was held in 2004 to celebrate the donation of Walter Rodney's personal papers by the Rodney family to the Robert W. Woodruff Library in the Atlanta University Center. The papers are available for research.

It's been almost 30 years since Rodney, a scholar and activist, was assassinated by a bomb in Georgetown, Guyana at age 38, but his legacy continues through the generosity of his family.

In 2006, his wife, Patricia Rodney, Ph.D., M.P.H., MSM professor and assistant dean for Public Health Education and their three children, formed the Walter Rodney Foundation committed to sharing his life and works with students, scholars and community activists around the world.

Its mission is to promote the vision of Walter Rodney in the areas of self-advancement, human rights and social justice through education, health and development initiatives.

Rodney said her family donated her late husband's collection to the Robert W. Woodruff Library of the Atlanta University Center (AUC) in 2003 even though several universities offered to purchase the papers. "His legacy wasn't for sale," she said. "We knew the archivist would do a good job with the papers. We also wanted students from around the world to have access to his papers." Since 2004 an annual symposium has been held in Atlanta, Georgia, during the week of Rodney's birthday, March 23, 1942.

The afternoon program will begin with a conversation between noted author and historian Dr. Paula Giddings and Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall, womanist scholar and director of Spelman College Women's Research and Resource Center. Giddings will discuss her recently published book on African American journalist, Ida B. Wells, revealing parallels between the activism of Walter Rodney and Wells.

The symposium also includes two scholarly panels of faculty, students, and community activists who will discuss the underdevelopment and redevelopment of the nation of Haiti with respect to the impact and aftermath of the recent earthquake. Cultural presentations include dance, drumming and spoken word, and a special performance by "Our Kids Atlanta."

The Walter Rodney Symposium is hosted by the Walter Rodney Foundation in collaboration with the African American Human Rights Foundation, Clark Atlanta University Department of Political Science, Kennesaw State University African and African Diaspora Studies, Morehouse School of Medicine Master of Public Health Program, Robert W. Woodruff Library of the Atlanta University Center, and Spelman College Women's Research and Resource Center.

For more information on the symposium, contact Karen Jefferson, 404-978-2045 or kjefferson@auctr.edu.

Additionally, the Walter Rodney Papers are available for viewing and research at the Woodruff Library of the AUC. To schedule an appointment, contact 404-978-2052 or e-mail archives@auctr.edu.

Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM), located in Atlanta, Georgia, was founded in 1975 as the Medical Education Program at Morehouse College. In 1981 Morehouse School of Medicine became an independently chartered institution and the first minority medical school established at a Historically Black College and University in the 20th century. MSM is among the nation's leading educators of primary care physicians. Our faculty and alumni are noted in their fields for excellence in teaching, research and public policy, and are known in the community for exceptional, culturally appropriate patient care. For more information about Morehouse School of Medicine, visit us online at www.msm.edu.

For Immediate Release Media Contact: Cherie Richardson / 404-752-1917 / crichardson@msm.edu