Civil rights attorney and social justice advocate Ben Crump will deliver the Morgan State University spring 2023 commencement address.
Crump is most well known for his work with victims of police brutality and for legislative reforms in preventing excessive police force. He has been known to represent many families such as the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Trayvon Martin.
“Mr. Crump’s passion for addressing injustices committed against marginalized communities and his unrelenting work to hold those responsible accountable, is the type of tenacity we hope will inspire our graduates and current students,” said President Wilson.
“While academic and professional success is noteworthy, we want our graduates to recognize that in fullness of life, public service and heeding the call of social responsibility is as equally important to an individual’s character,” Wilson added.
Crump has represented the residents of Flint, Michigan who were affected by the poisoned water of Flint River, and the family of Henrietta Lacks in receiving reparations from the vast industries that benefited from using her HeLa cell line illegitimately harvested for medical research.
Crump also represented 9 of the 13 Black women who were victims in the Holtzclaw Oklahoma City Police rape case in 2015 and worked with Robbie Tolan on his precedent-setting U.S. Supreme Court case involving excessive police force in 2008. As a staunch advocate against police brutality and civil rights abuse, he has been instrumental in drawing national attention to these cases and leading discussions about reforms, and developing implicit bias training and policies.
“I’m thrilled to be delivering the commencement address to the Spring 2023 class at Morgan State University. The students at this great HBCU represent the very best of what we have to offer for the future,” said Crump. “I look forward to articulating to them ways to make the world a better place for all of God’s children.”
Morgan State will host its graduate school spring commencement on May 18, and its undergraduate spring commencement on May 20.
