MLK Human Rights Conference

The Whatcom Human Rights Task Force, along with our co-host and sponsor Whatcom Community College, are excited about the 12th anniversary of the conference to be held at WCC’s Syre Center on January 16, 2010.

This year’s theme will be “Books not Bars: Education, the Media and the Untold Story of Human Rights Abuses in America’s Prisons.” This theme has been chosen to emphasize the importance of the media in the way that people see and the approach the criminal justice system and America’s prison-industrial complex. Creating a system of justice that truly represents and supports the equality of each and every member of our society has always been a goal of the Task Force.

We are thrilled to have Gerald Hankerson as our keynote speaker. On April 9, 2009 Gov. Gregoire pardoned Gerald Hankerson after spending greater than half of his lifetime behind bars. Mr. Henkerson had been convicted of “aggravated murder” and had always maintained his innocence, which was finally proven 22 years later. His is a compelling story which needs to be acknowledged and understood.

In addition to Mr. Hankerson’s morning address, we will also have an afternoon speaker. Jeff Shaw is a journalist and communications professional. For six years, he performed information services on treaty rights issues for the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. In 2007, he received the Fulbright Scholarship in journalism for reporting on indigenous peoples and the environment in Okinawa, Japan. Mr. Shaw is currently the Director of Communications for the North Carolina Justice Center.