Lora King: This is a I don’t know if you guys have dreams come true. But for me as a child, this is one of my dreams come true. And it’s such a blessing to have you here. You guys, USC, that people that worked on this project, you have no idea what this means to me
That was Lora King, daughter of Rodney King, speaking today at USC Annenberg’s Charlotta Bass Day celebratory panel event. The event featured special guest Dr. Ilyash Shabazz, the third daughter of Malcolm X, speaking with USC Bass Labs founding director Allissa V. Richardson about the legacy of Malcolm X and other prominent black civil rights activists, as well as how we can preserve the memories and ideas of these historic figures.
The event also featured a new Interactive Interview featuring Dr. Shabazz that was made in collaboration with the USC Libraries’ Second Draft Project. The Interview, which was created to highlight the voices of Black Americans connected to pivotal moments in the nation’s fight for social justice, allowed attendees to ask whatever questions they may have to a digital Dr. Shabazz and listen to prerecorded responses selected by AI. Student attendee Kiara Timo was impressed by the event, which expanded her understanding of one of the civil rights movement’s most prominent figures.
Kiara Timo: I know a decent amount about Malcolm X, but it was interesting learning about his daughter, all of his children, but specifically the guests that we had here tonight, because it’s not an aspect of his life or his existence as a human being that we often sort of delve into.
The event’s hosts, The USC Annenberg Charlotta Bass Journalism and Justice Lab, said the Bass Day event is not a one off, but rather part of the Lab’s ongoing mission to preserve and highlight black voices. We spoke with USC Bass Fellowship Scholar and Journalism Graduate Student Taylor Contarino about the Lab’s ambitions going into their second year of operations. Contarino is also part of Annenberg Media’s Equity Board.
Taylor Contarino: What’s really exciting about this year is like, now that we’re already established, we’re just implementing all of this amazing programming. So we have common coming in next week, which is just like, insane, like, as a huge music fan have in common here is going to be so crazy and just really privileged that we’re able to do something like that.
To keep updated on upcoming events hosted by the Bass Lab, make sure to follow the Lab on Instagram @_uscbasslab.