Piedmont College is hosting a “Lillian Smith Day” at the campus in Demorest Sept. 30 to commemorate the life of the noted civil rights pioneer from Clayton.
The celebration will include scholarly presentations, book signings, an art exhibition, remembrances of Lillian Smith from family and friends, and more. The events are free and open to the public, but registration is required.
“This year marks the 50th anniversary of Lillian Smith's death,” said Craig Amason, director of Piedmont’s Lillian E. Smith Center in Clayton. “From her controversial 1944 novel ‘Strange Fruit,’ to her influential ‘Killers of the Dream’ in 1949, and until her death in 1966, Smith spoke out against injustice. To commemorate the life of this great humanitarian, we invite everyone to join us as we celebrate the life and work of a fine writer and a champion of social justice.”
Events will include a book signing by Dr. Lisa Hodgens and Dr. Margaret Rose Gladney, co-editors of a new book, “A Lillian Smith Reader,” published in September by the University of Georgia Press. Hodgens is a professor emerita of English at Piedmont, and Gladney is a professor emerita of American Studies at the University of Alabama.
Speakers will include Dr. John Inscoe, the Albert B. Saye Professor of History at the University of Georgia; Dr. Will Brantley, professor of English at Middle Tennessee State University; Dr. Robert H. Brinkmeyer Jr., professor of Southern Studies at the University of South Carolina; and Sally Stanhope, author of a history of Smith’s Laurel Falls Camp in Clayton.
The day will also feature an art exhibit by Tommye Scanlin, who has been an artist-in-residence at Piedmont’s Lillian E. Smith Center in Clayton; and talks by friends and family members who will share their memories of Lillian Smith.
Events will be held at the Swanson Center for Performing Arts and Communications, located on the Piedmont Demorest campus at 365 College Drive. For more information and to register, visit www.piedmont.edu/LESday or contact Amason at [email protected].
