Nikole Hannah-Jones, Pulitzer prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project, will be the featured speaker for the Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture Series of Mott Community College (MCC), Wednesday, April 13 at 7 p.m. at the Capitol Theatre in Flint. Tickets are free, to pre-order tickets visit https://tickets.thewhiting.com/9500 or call 810-237-7333. Masks are required.
The 1619 Project is an ongoing initiative from The New York Times Magazine that began in August 2019, the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative. The project helps explain not only the persistence of anti-Black racism and inequality in American life today, but also the roots of so much of what makes the country unique.
“It is exciting to be able to bring Ms. Hannah-Jones to Flint to discuss the 1619 project,” said MCC President, Dr. Beverly Walker-Griffea. “The topic aligns well with the College’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, a core tenet of our strategic initiatives,” she added.
Hannah-Jones’ appearance in co-sponsored by Mott Community College, Community Foundation of Greater Flint, Flint & Genesee Group, Flint Institute of Music, Ruth Mott Foundation and the University of Michigan-Flint.
Hannah-Jones is a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine. She has spent her career investigating racial inequality and injustice, and her reporting has earned her the MacArthur Fellowship, known as the Genius grant, a Peabody Award, two George Polk Awards and the National Magazine Award three times. Hannah-Jones also earned the John Chancellor Award for Distinguished Journalism and was named Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists and the Newswomen’s Club of New York. In 2020 she was inducted into the Society of American Historians and in 2021 she was named a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
She also serves as the Knight Chair of Race and Journalism at Howard University, where she is founding the Center for Journalism & Democracy. In 2016, Hannah-Jones co-founded the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, which seeks to increase the number of reporters and editors of color. She holds a Master of Arts in Mass Communication from the University of North Carolina and earned her BA in History and African-American studies from the University of Notre Dame.
About the Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture Series
The Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture Series, named for benefactor William S. Ballenger, Sr., brings prominent individuals to the college to lecture on topics of social, cultural, economic, scientific and historical significance. It was created to enhance educational opportunities for MCC students as well as create a public discussion of issues facing the greater Flint community.
Since its inception in 1955, speakers have included national and international thought leaders and influencers such as rocket scientist Werner Von Braun, journalists Alistair Cooke and Peter Jennings, art critic Stanley Kaufman, talk show host Geraldo Rivera, writers Alex Haley and William Buckley, humorist Art Buchwald, Black activist Julian Bond, businessman Daymond John, musician and author Patti Smith, mental health advocate and actor Sean Astin, former Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher, actress and activist Jenifer Lewis, and journalists and authors Sonia Nazario and John Quiñones.
