News & Events Al Sharpton To Speak at Amherst College April 3

March 19, 2004
Director of Media Relations
413/542-8417

AMHERST, Mass.-Civil rights activist and former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination Al Sharpton will speak on Saturday, April 3, at 4 p.m. in Johnson Chapel at Amherst College. Sharpton's talk, the keynote of Black Alumni Weekend at Amherst, is free and open to the public. A schedule for Black Alumni Weekend is available at www.amherst.edu/alumni/events/blackalumniweekend.

When Sharpton conceded the 2004 Democratic nomination to John Kerry on March 15, he told the Associated Press, "My campaign continues now to pick up delegates so that we can go to the convention to coalesce with other delegates." In a statement he said he wants a Democratic platform that "embraces affirmative action and cracks down on police brutality, improves schools in minority districts, increases minority access to health care and bolsters programs to create jobs for minorities."

Stan Rothenberg of the Rothenberg Political Report told CNN that Sharpton is "probably the most entertaining speaker in the Democratic field. He's terrific at beating up Bush and at rallying Democratic partisans to traditional Democratic issues."

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