November 23, 2009

Dear Friend:

Istanbul Center is proud to co-convene the Leadership Forum on December 2^nd and Town Hall meeting on December 9^th celebrating President Abraham Lincoln’s 200^th birth day organized by the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission. Please join us for a unique Leadership Forum on December 2, 2009 to discuss Atlanta’s Unfinished Work: Race, Civility and Equality of Opportunity.

For many people, the election of President Barack Obama was evidence that the “unfinished work” described by President Abraham Lincoln in the Gettysburg Address – that of creating equal opportunity regardless of race – is now “finished.”

We believe that now, more than ever, you and other community and business leaders, distinguished scholars, civic-minded intellectuals, and public servants must come together to begin exploring the 21^st century implications of Lincoln’s legacy and the “unfinished work” concerning race in Atlanta. 

We are most interested in hearing your perspective on:

• How the term “unfinished work” correlates with race and opportunity in metropolitan Atlanta.
• How does our civil rights heritage play into this “unfinished work?”
• Does the presence or lack of civility play a role in our city’s unique racial past?
• Can Atlanta move beyond black and white, or has it already?

LEADERSHIP FORUM DETAILS

The forum will take place at the Executive Leadership Center at Morehouse College in Atlanta on December 2, 2009, from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. It will include group conversations, moderated panel discussions and a luncheon keynote by Dr. Orville Vernon Burton, award-winning author of The Age of Lincoln.  Panelists confirmed for the Forum include:

1. Sachi Koto of Sachi Koto Communications, formerly with CNN Headline News;
2. Martin Lehfeldt, author and past president of the Southeastern Council of Foundations;
3. Herman Skip Mason, archivist at Morehouse College;
4. Rebecca Burns, editor of Atlanta Magazine and author of Rage in Gate City;
5. Judith Martinez-Sadri, co-founder of Atlanta Latino;
6. Alexis Scott, publisher of the Atlanta Daily World; and
7. Beverly Tatum, president of Spelman College.

As space is limited for the Forum, we encourage you to RSVP as soon as possible at www.LincolnLivesOn.com. Please use the promotional code LINCOLN to reserve your space.  Registration will close on November 24, 2009. Please indicate in your registration that you learned of this event from Istanbul Center.

TOWN HALL INVITATION

On December 9, 2009 at 6:00 p.m. at The Carter Center, we also hope you will join the larger community-wide discussion on Unfinished Work: Race, Civility, and Equality of Opportunity.  This town hall will discuss race, civility and equality of opportunity while exploring the impact of race in our region.  

The event will bring together Atlanta community members from all walks of life to consider the “unfinished work” yet to do regarding race in our city.  Dr. Stephen Carter, Yale University William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law, an acclaimed author and recognized by Time magazine as one of the top 50 leaders for the 21^st century, will be our guest speaker for the evening. 

He will be joined by distinguished panelists:

• Jerry Gonzalez, executive director of the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials, recognized as one the top 100 influential Georgians by Georgia Trend; and
• Manisha Sinha, award winning professor of Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
• Angela Robinson, broadcast journalist and host of In Contact on Public Broadcasting Atlanta will be moderator for this event and the forum on December 2nd.

This second portion of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission event seeks to build mutual understanding about differing perspectives on race and ethnicity.  It also provides an opportunity to re-examine what it means to be American in the 21st century.

Reservations are also required for this event.  You can RSVP at www.LincolnLivesOn.com 

We hope that your calendar will allow you to consider sharing your thoughts on the “unfinished work” left to do in Atlanta at this critical juncture.  Please feel free to contact me or Jamila S. Owens at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 404-523-6220 ext. 12 with additional questions.

 Sincerely,

Isa Afacan

Director of Academic Affairs

Istanbul Center
Two Midtown Plaza Suite 1010
1349 W Peachtree St NW
Atlanta, GA 30309

Ph: (678) 990-1717
Fx: (877) 900-1717
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Co-conveners for this event include:

American Jewish Committee Atlanta, Anti-Defamation League; APEX Museum; Atlanta History Center; Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education; Atlanta Regional Commission; Bahai Community of Atlanta; Clayton State University; Civic League for Regional Atlanta; Communities in Schools Atlanta; Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta; Emory University- Transforming Community Project; Emory University- Center for Ethics; Exploritas; Georgia Humanities Council; Intergenerational Dialogues; Istanbul Center; Jimmy Carter Presidential Library; Kennesaw State University- Center for the Study of the Civil War Era; Latin American Association; Morehouse College; National Archives-Southeast Region, Morrow; National Center for Civil and Human Rights; Oglethorpe University; OneWorld Archives; Rialto Center for the Arts- Georgia State University, Save the Family Institute; UNCF- Institute for Capacity Building; United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta; University of Georgia Press; Wren’s Nest

The Fetzer Institute of Kalamazoo, Michigan provided a major grant to the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission Foundation to produce the Lincoln Legacy Town Hall Meetings. Additional funding has been provided by, Prudential, The Marjorie Kovler Fund, McCormick Foundation, Motorola Foundation and Canadian National.  Local funding for the Atlanta event has been provided by, Georgia Humanities Council, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Morehouse College.