During his tenure as head of the NAACP, Kweisi Mfume helped the nation's largest civil rights organization get out of bankruptcy and registered the largest number of black voters. And in this post-election year, Mfume, the outgoing NAACP president and CEO, will speak to college students about what to do now that they have voted.
Mfume will speak at The University of Memphis on April 7th as part of "A Night of Enlightenment".
"The ballots have been counted and now what," said Frank Scott Jr., vice president of Alpha Phi Alpha.
The Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and SAC are sponsoring the event.
It's taking place during the Alpha's "Frozen Reign" week.
Mfume served as president and CEO of the NAACP for nine years before resigning this January. His ability to lead was the main reason he was invited to speak at The U of M, said David Jones, Neophite member of Alpha Phi Alpha.
"He will be speaking on youth leadership and voting and how both issues affect people our age," Jones said.
Mfume's career has been one in which leadership has been a key part. Mfume's past includes four terms as a congressional representative before becoming the NAACP leader. Since his stepping down he has announced his plans to run for Senate for the state of Maryland.
Last fall the speaker that was brought to The U of M was civil rights activist and comedian Dick Gregory. His speech was about the importance of voting at a time before the presidential election.
"Dick Gregory spoke before the elections about voting, and now Mfume will speak about becoming a leader," Scott said.
The fact that he was the leader of the NAACP doesn't mean the speech is only for minorities, he said.
"Just because he (Mfume) was with NAACP doesn't mean it's not a speech for everyone," the sales management major said. "We want everyone to hear this."
Jones said that the speech was to inform students.
"We've been doing programs like this to better the student community and inform them on key issues," he said.
One student who said he plans to attend the speech is sophomore Kurtis Gaston.
"I want to hear him speak because he seems like he could give good advice," said the computer engineering technology major.
The event is free and open to the public and is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at The Rose Theater.
