Press Release
Contact: Rhonda Ball Clark
Phone: 205.328.9696, ext. 236
Fax: 205.323.5219
E-mail: [email protected]
September 29, 2011
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) to Honor Charlayne Hunter-Gault
with Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award
Award-winning Journalist, Author and Civil Rights Icon to be Honored at
19th Annual Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Awards Dinner on Friday, November 4, 2011
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute will present its highest honor, the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human
Rights Award, to Charlayne Hunter-Gault, internationally known civil rights icon, journalist and author,
during BCRI’s nineteenth anniversary fundraising dinner on Friday, November 4, 2011. The annual award
recognizes individuals for their service to civil and human rights causes around the world. The awards
dinner, which is presented by BB&T, will take place in the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel Ballroom. A 6:00
p.m. reception precedes the 7:00 p.m. dinner. Other major sponsors of the event include HealthSouth Corporation; Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama; Regions Financial Corporation; The Birmingham News;
Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Inc..; Mercedes-Benz U. S. International, Inc. and Miles College For
sponsorship, table and ticket information, call 328-9696 x 236.
“We are pleased to pay tribute to Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth by honoring Charlayne Hunter-Gault, a
trailblazer and champion of diversity and inclusion within the field of journalism and the global
community,” BCRI President and CEO Dr. Lawrence Pijeaux, Jr. stated. “Throughout more than four decades in the news business, Mrs. Hunter-Gault has become known for exploring issues and events by
reporting their impact on individuals, and often has served as a voice for those who might otherwise be
unheard.”
An award-winning journalist, author and school desegregation pioneer, Hunter-Gault made civil rights
history as the first African-American woman to enroll and graduate from the University of Georgia (UGA).
The 1961 desegregation of UGA was led by Hunter-Gault and Hamilton Holmes, and is considered a defining moment in civil rights history, leading to the desegregation of other institutions of higher education in
Georgia and the deep South. In spite of the difficulty of her years as a student, Hunter-Gault has maintained close ties with UGA. In 1988, Hunter-Gault returned to UGA to become the school's first African
American commencement speaker, and in January of 2011, she delivered the 50th Anniversary Lecture as
part of UGA’s commemoration of the 50th anniversary of integration.
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Page 2 Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) to Honor Charlayne Hunter-Gault with Fred L. Shuttlesworth
Human Rights Award
After college, Hunter-Gault accepted a job as an editorial assistant with New Yorker magazine and garnered a yearlong Russell Sage Fellowship. In the early stages of her career, she served as a reporter and
evening anchor for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C. She also worked for The New York Times as a metropolitan reporter specializing in coverage of the African American community, while establishing the
Harlem bureau. Now established as one of television's premier journalists, Hunter-Gault has served as
national correspondent and fill-in anchor for PBS's MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour, chief correspondent for
National Public Radio in Africa and bureau chief for CNN in Johannesburg, South Africa. In addition to
two Emmys, Hunter-Gault has received numerous awards for journalism, such as two George Foster
Peabody Awards, Journalist of the Year from the National Association of Black Journalists, and Good
Housekeeping Magazine's Broadcast Personality of the Year Award. A published author, Hunter-Gault's
literary works include an autobiography, In My Place, and New News Out of Africa: Uncovering Africa's
Renaissance, which focuses on her exploration of modern Africa overlooked.
Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award
Established by the BCRI Board of Directors in 2002, the Annual Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights
Award serves as a tribute to the leadership and courage of the Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth throughout the course of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. This annual award is an opportunity for the Institute
to recognize individuals for their service to civil and human rights causes around the world. It is the
highest honor bestowed on an individual by the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Reverend
Shuttlesworth was the inaugural recipient of the award. Other recipients include Actor Danny Glover;
Dr. John Hope Franklin; Congressman John Lewis; Dr. Dorothy Cotton; Attorney Fred Gray; Reverend
Joseph Ellwanger; Reverend Joseph Lowery and Congressman James Clyburn.
About BCRI
The mission of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) is to promote civil and human rights
worldwide through education. Opened in 1992, BCRI presents an in-depth look at the Civil Rights
Movement through time, from before the movement's inception through today’s international struggle
for universal human rights. BCRI is more than just a museum; it is a place of research, a teaching facility and an acknowledged learning center for people of all ages and backgrounds. Each year, BCRI
reaches more than 140,000 individuals through tours and exhibitions as well as school and community
outreach, public programs, special events, and archival collections. Call 205-328-9696 or www.bcri.org
for more information.
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www.bcri.org
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