For immediate release: January 18, 2008

Note: Spelling of actress’ name, mZuri, is correct.

BLOOMSBURG — Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania will recognize the work of voting and civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer as part of its Martin Luther King Jr. observance. Actress mZuri will portray Hamer in the one-woman show “The Fannie Lou Hamer Story” Thursday, Jan. 24, at 7 p.m. in the Kehr Union Ballroom. The event is open to the public free of charge.
The film “Sankofa,” also featuring mZuri, will be shown Tuesday, Jan. 22, at 7 p.m. in Kehr Union Multipurpose room B. A student workshop with mZuri Thursday, Jan. 24, at 3:30 p.m. will focus on the meaning and significance of Sankofa. The workshop will be held in Kehr Union Multipurpose room A. Both events are open to the public free of charge.
“The Fannie Lou Hamer Story” was written and produced by mZuri, who has portrayed Hamer since 2001. During the 1960s, Hamer worked with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee to promote voter registration. Her commitment to anti-poverty projects and her role as a spokeswoman for the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party made her a central figure in the civil rights movement. mZuri portrays Hamer through monologues and song. CDs and DVDs of the performance will be available after the show.
The Martin Luther King Jr. observance events are sponsored by BU’s Black Cultural Society; the Black History Committee; the Consortium on Race, Gender and Ethnicity; the Office of Social Equity; the Frederick Douglass Institute; the Office of Multicultural Affairs; the BU Gospel Choir; Minority Organization of Righteous Educators; and the Office of the Provost.

Bloomsburg University is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The university serves approximately 8,000 students, offering comprehensive programs of study in the colleges of Professional Studies, Business, Liberal Arts and Science and Technology.