CalArts Program Director receives MLK Human Rights Hero Award

The recipient of the first annual Martin Luther King Jr. Human Rights Hero Award was announced on Friday, January 26th at the California Institute of the Arts.

[ClickPress, Wed Jan 31 2007] The recipient of the first annual Martin Luther King Jr. Human Rights Hero Award was announced on Friday, January 26th at the California Institute of the Arts. Glenna Avila, Director of the CalArts Community Arts Partnership Program (CAP) received the award from Academy Award nominated actor and founder of Artists for Human Rights, Anne Archer, for the program’s exemplary work in providing art education to inner city youth. To date, the CAP program has provided over a million dollars in scholarships to inner city students attending the program. CAP works in over 40 LA county cities and has taught over 300,000 children of different ethnicities.

The event was co-sponsored by International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance, Youth for Human Rights International, Artists for Human Rights and the Human Rights Department of the Church of Scientology International.

“CAP is changing the way society is viewing art and we feel that CAP exemplifies the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18, Freedom of Expression and Article 26, Right to an Education,” said Michelle Seward, National President of the International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance.

The event included a musical performance by guitarist William Morceillo, and a screening of selected Youth for Human Rights International Public Service announcements that depict the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration Human Rights.

“I have viewed many public service announcements, but these are the best that I have ever seen. They must be played everywhere to educate people on human rights,” stated Carson Bowley, a Sony employee who attended the evening.

The new international human rights hero award was announced last year by the co-sponsors of the event to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions in promoting human rights through implementation of one or more of the Universal Declaration.

Over the past ten years, the Foundation has helped organize and coordinate human rights events in major cities around the world in order to promote human rights education. For more information visit: www.humanrightsandtolerance.org.

###

Bookmark this release: Del.icio.us - Digg - Furl - Blinklist - Reddit