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The
Damon J.
Keith
Center
for
Civil
Rights
at Wayne
State
University
Law
School
Opens
By
Raymond
Rolak/
Tell Us
Detroit
 DETROIT
(Tell Us
Det) -
Emcee
Robert
Ackerman,
the Dean
at the
Wayne
State
University
Law
School
was
eloquent
and
precise
when
speaking
the
praises
of Judge
Damon J.
Keith.
In fact,
everybody
on the
dais had
extraordinary
praise
for the
guest of
honor.
From
Wayne
State
President,
Alan
Gilmour
to Mayor
of
Detroit,
Dave
Bing
every
next
anecdote
spoken
about
Judge
Keith
seemed
more
pleasing
to the
standing-room-only
audience.
The
packed
room was
on hand
for the
dedication
and
ribbon-cutting
of the
opening
of the
Damon J.
Keith
Center
for
Civil
Rights
at the
WSU Law
School.
Edsel
Ford II
and wife
Cynthia
along
with
philanthropist
A.
Alfred
Taubman
were
singled
out for
their
special
generosity
to the
project.
Also
highlighted
for
special
support
were the
Henry
Ford II
Fund,
W.K.
Kellogg
Foundation,
the DTE
Foundation,
and the
Community
Foundation
for
Southeast
Michigan.
Judge
Keith
has been
a
Federal
jurist
since
1967. He
has
counseled
Presidents
and
citizens
alike,
all with
his
noted
humanism
and
grace.
The
event
had that
wonderful
feel of
a large
family
gathering.
The aura
in the
auditorium
was
electric
when
Judge
Keith
made
special
note to
highlight
his
family,
Willie
Horton
and
Mitch
Albom.
Keith
made
special
and
humorous
notations
about
the
giving
timeline
for the
project
again
stressing
the
generosity
of
Taubman.
Keith, a
Detroit
native
son, has
a
special
bond
with
Horton.
As a
young
attorney,
Keith
became
the
guardian
for the
outstanding
baseball
player,
when
Horton
signed a
big
bonus in
1961.
Their
special
relationship
is a
Detroit
story of
triumph
for the
ages.
The
two-story
building
will
feature
classrooms,
conference
rooms,
student
space
and a
lecture
hall. A
special
interactive
exhibit
will be
featured,
Marching
Toward
Justice:
The
History
of the
Fourteenth
Amendment.
The
Keith
Center
will
also be
home to
a
special
lecture
series
each
year.
The
first
one
featured
world
personality
and
humanitarian
Harry
Belafonte.
WSU
President
Gilmour
broke up
the
audience
with an
amusing
recollection
regarding
technology
glitches
and his
short
remarks
regarding
what the
Keith
Center
will
mean for
Detroit
and WSU
on an
international
stage
were
well-spoken.
That
family
feel was
highlighted
at the
conclusion
of the
ceremony
with the
solo of
WSU
Voice
Instructor,
Emery
Stephens’
rendition
of “We
Shall
Overcome.”
“I hope
the
Damon J.
Keith
Center
for
Civil
rights
serves
as a
beacon
for
civil
rights,
and that
it might
stand as
a
testament
to the
achievements
of those
who
marched,
bled,
died,
and
filed
suit so
that all
Americans
might be
treated
equally
under
the law.
I also
hope
that it
serves
as an
incubator
of
future
civil
rights
advocates
and a
space
for
relevant
academic
scholarship.”
-Judge
Damon J.
Keith
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