With community organizer Barack Obama in the White House, it is an appropriate time to explore the history of such efforts in Charlotte. A panel discussion moderated by Dr. Tom Hanchett will consider questions such as: How does community change happen? Is it driven from the top down or bottom up? How do community, grassroots organizers affect important change and make it stick? Panelists include:

U.S. Representative Mel Watt - Roots in the '60s: Civil Rights and Getting Out the Vote
Lyndall Hare, Consultant - Expanding the Dream: Charlotte's Free South Africa Movement
Alfreda Barringer, Kellogg National Leadership Fellow - Empowering Neighborhoods
Myra Clark, Executive Director, Center for Commnity Transitions - Alternatives to Incarceration
LaWana Mayfield, Mecklenburg Justice Project Coordinator, Grassroots Leadership
Ruben Campillo, Advocacy Coordinator, Latin American Coalition - Black-brown Coalition Building Today

Composer David Crowe premiers a new piece "Rabble-Rousers, Activists, and Quiet Lovers of Justice," and songwriter-activist Si Kahn of Charlotte-based Grassroots Leadership leads a sing-along "Community Organizing in Song."

Sponsored by Grassroots Leadership in partnership with Levine Museum. Free admission. Dessert and cash bar. For more information call 704.332.3090.