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Campus.News for the Week of January 31, 2005 *
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* Black Student Alliance Brings Documentary Filmmaker to Campus Feb. 3

Kerrissa Lynch, posting flyers for BSA Feb. 3 film screening of "The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till," produced by Keith Beauchamp.
Kerrissa Lynch, posting flyers for BSA Feb. 3 film screening of The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till, produced by Keith Beauchamp. Photo by Beth Guikema.
The Black Student Alliance will kick off Black History Month with a film screening and discussion of the documentary film The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till, produced by filmmaker Keith Beauchamp. The event will be held on Thursday, Feb.3 from 7 to 9 p.m. in DCC 308.

Emmett Till was a 14-year-old black boy who was murdered for whistling at a white woman in Money, Miss. in 1955. Beauchamp's documentary reinvestigates the murder and subsequent trial. As a result of his documentary, the US Department of Justice re-opened the 50-year-old murder case in May 2004. The discussion with Beauchamp following the screening will focus on "The Importance of the Civil Rights: Where Does It Stand Today?"

The event was initiated by Kerrissa Lynch, president of the Black Student Alliance at Rensselaer, who was inspired to action by the words of Eddie Ade Knowles, vice president for student life. In January of 2003, at a breakfast tribute in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Knowles spoke of Emmett Till and how his death helped sparked the civil rights movement, and he encouraged the audience to seek knowledge through self-education.

"It's hard to know where you're going especially when you don't know where you have come from," Lynch said in reference to Dr. Knowles' speech. "When I heard him that day, I just had to find out who Emmett Till was and what happened to him. How could I not know such an important event in history?"

Kerrissa Lynch
Photo of Kerrissa Lynch, Black Student Alliance, president, by Beth Guikema.
After researching the Emmett Till story, and recently learning of the Beauchamp documentary, Lynch encouraged the Black Student Alliance to invite him as a speaker.

For Lynch, a computer and systems engineering major, the pursuit of knowledge as a means of opening ones's mind was stressed by her Trinidadian parents. They encouraged her to take advantage of educational opportunities around her, and she believes that has helped give her the discipline and focus that she applies to all of her endeavors at Rensselaer. She says she chose Rensselaer because she wanted an environment that encouraged diversity in all areas of student life and academics.

"Kerrissa took Dr. Knowles' words and put them to action, and by bringing this event to campus, she has created the opportunity for others to be inspired," said Cameron McLean, activities coordinator of the Rensselaer Union. 		* *
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