Celebrate Black History Month at the Collier County Library Headquarters Branch, 2385 Orange Blossom Dr., North Naples. Learn about a towering figure in the struggle for civil rights and voting rights in the U.S. As an activist and congressman, he was renowned for his unshakable integrity, indomitable courage, and determination to get into “good trouble”. On February 15th (5 PM – 7 PM), Raymond Arsenault will discuss his new book, John Lewis: In Search of the Beloved Community. In addition to the book talk, the library will host an exhibit about John Lewis’ life and his dedication to civil rights, human rights and voting rights. The League of Women Voters of Collier County has contributed a component of this exhibit focused on protecting the right to vote. Admission is free. No registration is required.

Raymond Arsenault, Professor Emeritus at the University of South Florida is a well-known historian of the American South and an award-winning author. He has written the first full-length biography of John Lewis. Arsenault is author of several award-winning books on civil rights history, including Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice; The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, The Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert that Awakened America, and Arthur Ashe: A Life. Emmy Award-winning documentary “Freedom Riders” by Stanley Nelson was based on Arsenault’s book by the same name.

In his new book Arsenault traces Lewis’ upbringing in Alabama, his activism as a Freedom Rider and leader of the student nonviolent coordinating committee, to his championing of voting rights and antipoverty initiatives, and his decades of public service as the “Conscience of Congress”. Both in the streets and in Congress, Lewis promoted a philosophy of non-violence to bring about change. John Lewis was one of the most important civil rights leaders of our time, and the only one to make the transition from nonviolent direct action to electoral politics at the national level.

The book talk and exhibit are sponsored by Arsenault Studios, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, LWVCC, Iqbal and Shelby Mamdani Foundation, NAACP of Collier County.

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Contact information: Cynthia Cave (cigidst@gmail.com)