University of Arkansas Press Author to Speak at Nightbird Books
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Michael Vinson Williams will be reading from and discussing his book Medgar Evers: Mississippi Martyr at Nightbird Books in Fayetteville on at 7 p.m. Friday, April 27. The book, published by the University of Arkansas Press in 2011, chronicles Evers’ life from childhood through his assassination in 1963. Publishers Weekly called it “an important and readable study of this seminal leader and the history of the civil rights movement.”
Williams, assistant professor of history and African American studies at Mississippi State University, will also be on the University of Arkansas campus speaking to classes through the university’s African American studies program.The biography draws on personal interviews from Myrlie Evers-Williams (Evers’ widow), his two remaining siblings, friends, grade-school-to-college schoolmates, and fellow activists to elucidate Evers as an individual, leader, husband, brother, and father. Extensive archival work in the Evers Papers, the NAACP Papers, oral history collections, FBI files, Citizen Council collections, and the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Papers provides a detailed account of Evers’ NAACP work and a clearer understanding of the racist environment that ultimately led to his murder.
Library Journal said of the book, “Williams’s work tops what have been too few head-on examinations of the substance and significance of this martyr’s sacrifice, a man who demonstrated the truth he liked to repeat: ‘You can kill a man, but you can’t kill an idea.’ General readers and scholars will benefit from reading this work.”
Nightbird Books is located at 205 W. Dickson St. in Fayetteville. A book signing will follow the discussion. The event is free and open to the public.
Topics
Contacts
Melissa King, director of sales and marketing
University of Arkansas Press
479-575-7715,
mak001@uark.edu
Headlines
Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design Presents Fall 2024 Lecture Series Lineup
Through these carefully selected presenters, the Fay Jones School continues to engage with the broad scope of issues, opportunities and challenges that society and the design disciplines confront today.
Honors College to Host Pulse Discussion on the History of Campus Protests
An expert panel moderated by the Democracy Fellows RSO will discuss the history, philosophy, emergency management and legality of campus protests on Sept. 12.
Baxter Joins Animal Science As Equine Instructor, Ranch Horse & Equine Judging Coach
Amanda Baxter, who has extensive experience in 4-H horse contests and clinics, is joining the Department of Animal Science as an equine instructor and head coach of the ranch horse and equine judging teams.
Wang Appointed Associate Editor for Biophysics Reviews
Yong Wang, associate professor of physics at the University of Arkansas, has been named an associate editor of Biophysics Reviews, the journal of the American Institute of Physics.
Data Science Program to Be Led by Previous Engineering Dean While Director Search Begins
Former Dean John English will serve as director while a search for the successor to University Professor Manuel Rosetti, the Data Science Program's inaugural director, is conducted.