Major League Baseball Announces Panelists for Baseball and the Civil Rights Movement Roundtable Discussion

Musical performers set for the Second Annual Civil Rights Game presented By AutoZone

03/24/2008 -- Major League Baseball (MLB) today announced that Hank Aaron, Martin Luther King III, Belize Ambassador Shabazz, Sharon Robinson, Omar Minaya, and Ken Williams will serve as this year's panelists for its Baseball and the Civil Rights Movement roundtable discussion.

The discussion will take place at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN, on Friday, March 28, from 4-6PM (CT) as part of the activities surrounding the league's second annual Civil Rights Game presented by AutoZone. Harvard Law School professor and renowned expert on race and justice Charles Ogletree will again moderate a discussion of the pivotal role Baseball played in the Civil Rights Movement and the part it continues to play in our society's future. MLB Advanced Media will stream the roundtable live on MLB.com.

The Civil Rights Game presented by AutoZone will pay tribute to one of our country's most significant eras of social change and honor Major League Baseball's involvement in the historic struggle through which people of color made important contributions to American society. The roundtable panelists include:

* Hank Aaron, Baseball Hall of Famer and baseball's all-time leader in RBI with 2,297, in extra-base hits with 1,477 and in total bases with 6,856. The all-time great ranks second with 755 home runs and is third on the all-time list with 3,771 hits. Aaron was named to a record 24 All-Star teams, earned three Gold Gloves and was a two-time batting champion. "Hammerin' Hank" was the 1957 National League Most Valuable Player when he helped lead the Milwaukee Braves to the World Series crown. Also, he finished in the top three of MVP voting six other times;
* Martin Luther King III, first son of the civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and a human rights and political activist. King currently heads Realizing the Dream, an organization which promotes and embodies justice, equality, and the community through specific sustainable initiatives in economic development, non-violence and conflict resolution training, and targeted leadership development for youth;
* Ambassador Shabazz, eldest daughter of Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz, appointed by the former Prime Minister of Belize as the Ambassador-at-Large. She remains dedicated to Belize while engaged in the global arena serving in the areas of International Cultural Affairs, Project Development, Youth & Sports based initiatives, amongst many. As founder of the Pilgrimage Foundation, Ms. Shabazz addresses and offers curriculums on identifying the value of understanding one's inherent merit, human rights, personal perception and responsibility in context to heritage, traditions, regional environment, multinational influences and its impact on enhancing the broader community, families and the future;
* Sharon Robinson, author and daughter of Baseball Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, who also serves as Educational Programming Consultant for Major League Baseball;
* Ken Williams, former Major League outfielder and current Chicago White Sox General Manager, only the third African American to hold such a position in MLB history;
* Omar Minaya, General Manager of the New York Mets, who became the first Hispanic to hold this post when Commissioner Selig appointed him to lead the Montreal Expos in February of 2002.

Other weekend activities surrounding the Civil Rights Game presented by AutoZone include the Major League Baseball Beacon Awards Banquet, which will be held at the Peabody Hotel on March 28 at 7:30PM CT and will honor three individuals for their efforts on behalf of civil rights throughout the world. On Saturday, March 29, a Youth Summit will be held where MLB.com's Billy Sample will lead a question and answer session for local Boys & Girls Clubs, RBI, Little League and Memphis Redbirds STRIPES program participants. White Sox All-Star Jermaine Dye, Mets outfielder Marlon Anderson and Disney Channel's "Cory in the House" star Kyle Massey are scheduled to appear. Last year's Youth Summit featured 2007 CY Young winner C.C. Sabathia, Cardinals outfielder Preston Wilson and Disney's "The Cheetah Girls."

Grammy Award-winning gospel artist Bebe Winans is set to perform the National Anthem as part of pre-game ceremonies that will also feature the Tennessee State University Marching Band. Winans will perform a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by singing "I Have a Dream" and Memphis' LeMoyne - Owen College Choir will accompany him. Stax Recording artist Lalah Hathaway, daughter of the late great Donny Hathaway, will perform "America the Beautiful" during the 7th Inning Stretch.

Jackie Robinson and Larry Doby's original Hall of Fame plaques will be available for public viewing at the National Civil Rights Museum on Friday, courtesy of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. The plaques will also be available for viewing Saturday at AutoZone Park throughout the game.

Net proceeds from all Civil Rights Game presented by AutoZone events will be donated to charity. Tickets for the Civil Rights Game and MLB Beacon Awards Banquet are available at mets.com, whitesox.com and memphisredbirds.com. Tickets are also available at MLB.com and at the AutoZone Park box office.

Source: MLB

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