Bree Newsome is the keynote speaker for the fifth annual Ella Baker Day Celebration at Coastal Carolina University, which will be held on April 19 at 6 p.m. in the James J. Johnson Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.

Newsome drew national attention in 2015 when she climbed the flagpole in front of the South Carolina Capitol building and removed the Confederate flag. Her act of defiance has since become a symbol of courage and empowerment for women. Her presentation at CCU titled "Tearing Hatred from the Sky." She now works as a writer, director, producer and speaker. Visit www.breenewsome.com.

"We are pleased to honor the life and legacy of Ella Baker this week," said Deborah Perkins, associate professor at CCU and director of the Social Justice Research Center. "The celebration began on Tuesday when students from three classes presented poster presentations on 'The Art of Resistance.' Bree Newsome's work fits nicely with this theme because she successfully uses her own artistry as a musician and filmmaker to raise awareness and knowledge of social injustice in our world in order to affect change."

Ella Josephine Baker (1903-1986) is widely recognized as one of the nation's greatest activists. Baker worked with organizations such as Martin Luther King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Baker is known as the mother of the civil rights movement and was respected for her belief in the potential and dignity of every individual.

Ella Baker Day at CCU is hosted by the Social Justice Research Initiative, Office of Multicultural Student Services, and the Women's and Gender Studies program.

The Johnson Auditorium is in Room 116 of the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration Building, 119 Chanticleer Drive E. on the main Conway campus. A parking map is available here.

Social media:

Twitter: @WGST_CCU

Twitter: @MSS_CCU

Twitter: @BreeNewsome