The Florida Legislative Black Caucus will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act on Wednesday at the Florida Legislative Black Caucus Distinguished Lecture Series.
Chicarla Pye, legislative aide to Rep. Allen Williams, said the event will honor the act.
“The overall theme of the meeting will be the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and we will have the first African-American Bar president to introduce our guest speaker,” Pye said.
John Hope Bryant, founder and CEO of Operation HOPE, will be the guest speaker at the event. Bryant serves President Barack Obama as chairman of the subcommittee on the Underserved and Community Empowerment for the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability.
Miriam Marlow, project manager of FLBC, said the timing of the 50th anniversary of the passage of the landmark desegregation and anti-discrimination bill is perfect.
“This will be an honor to have a civil rights leader like John Hope Bryant speak at the very peak of Black History month,” Marlow said.
State Sen. Geraldine Thompson, program coordinator, agreed that the event couldn’t have been scheduled at a better time.
“Being that this is Black History Month, it is only right to have the first African-American Bar president introduce our civil rights guest speaker, John Hope Bryant,” Thompson said.
The FLBC represents 27 black state legislators hailing from various districts, numerous counties and thousands of Florida’s citizens of diverse backgrounds.
According to the FLBC website, “The Florida Legislative Black Caucus Distinguished Lecture Series provides nationally and internationally renowned speakers a forum to present important issues to elected leaders, the professional community, college students and the general public.”
The free event will be held at the Capitol on the fourth floor of the House of Representatives’ House Chambers at 6 p.m.