Symposium Held to Honor the Late Congressman Parren Mitchell

On April 29, 2014, The Critical Race Initiative (CRI), under the auspices of the Department of Sociology at the University of Maryland, held a symposium honoring the legacy of the late Congressman Parren Mitchell. In 1952, Mitchell became the first African-American to obtain a graduate degree from the University of Maryland (UMD), having completed all of his courses at the College Park campus. Following a fervent legal battle in Baltimore courtrooms, Mitchell’s admittance to the University of Maryland was a critical step in desegregating the university, which had previously arranged for students of color to attend classes at universities or classrooms outside of College Park. Mitchell’s degree was obtained in the Department of Sociology, and Mitchell often stated later in his life that his sociological training shaped his activism in politics and social change.

Among his most notable accomplishments, Mitchell was a recipient of the Purple Heart for his service in WWII, the first African-American elected to Congress from Maryland in 1970 (serving in Congress for eight terms) and a founder of the Congressional Black Caucus.

The symposium examined the legacy of Parren Mitchell through the lens of critical race theory. Symposium participants chronicled past events at UMD and the state of Maryland that helped establish the landmark Brown v. Board Education Supreme Court decision, addressed current practices, strategies, and policies aimed to transform barriers to graduate education for racial/ethnic students, and discussed future possibilities for UMD to increase minority student representation and become a positive presence in local minority communities including Prince George's County and Baltimore.

Moderated by sociologist and Distinguished University Professor Patricia Hill Collins, panelists Odis Johnson (Interim Chair & Associate Professor, African American Studies Department), Sharon Fries-Britt (Associate Professor, College of Education), Julie J. Park (Assistant Professor, College of Education), and Kumea Shorter-Gooden (UMD’s Chief Diversity Officer and Associate Vice President) discussed key gateways of the education pipeline (e.g. high school, college, graduate school, and junior faculty life) as minorities transition from students to professionals. Their talks collectively focused on how Mitchell's legacy speaks to the importance of continuing the pursuit of racial equality through policies aimed at addressing systemic inequities in higher education.

Following the symposium, attendees joined the panelists and distinguished guests for a reception and the presentation of a short documentary commemorating Parren Mitchell’s legacy at the University of Maryland. Click here to watch the short film.

A gallery of photographs from the symposium and event can be accessed by clicking here.

The reception was highlighted by remarks from Maryland State Delegate Keiffer Jackson Mitchell, Jr., the nephew of the late Congressman Parren Mitchell.
 

Published on Thu, May 8, 2014 - 2:17PM